The Dragon's Eye
by Shinigami of the Elder Gods
Summary: Madara Uchiha died at the end of the Fourth Great Shinobi War, but he vowed vengeance, even after death. Now he has returned, only in the form of our favorite dragon slayer. Fairy Tail will never be the same again. Smarter, Darker Natsu.
1. Chapter 1

**WHEW! Sorry it took me so long. I had so many fanfic ideas, but this darn one gave me severe writer's block! I didn't want to move on until I finished it, and it took me four Kami-forsaken weeks to do so! Any way! This was inspired by another fanfic, I forget the name, but I hope you enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail. Only Hiro Mashima-Dono does.**

* * *

 _"Freedom is what you do with what's been done to you."_

 _Jean-Paul Sartre_

* * *

 _It was the end of the Fourth Great Shinobi War. Fires raged into the sky as the land burned with black fire, corpses were lying everywhere, and the very earth was torn asunder. In the center of it all was 4 people. The first was rather broody young man, with black hair arranged not unlike a duck's butt, armed with a sword, and possessing very strange eyes, purple with concentric circles spreading out from the pupil. The next was a young woman with unique pink hair, dressed in some kind of military uniform, with a unique diamond on her forehead. The last one was another young man, a blonde with spiky hair. His clothes were very tattered, a noticeable shade of black and orange, and his most distinctive marks were three whisker marks on each cheek._

 _They were facing against a singular man, wearing black clothing under once glorious red armor, now shattered and broken beyond repair. He had very long black hair, and he no longer had eyes,, having been slashed out with some kind of sharp object. He also no longer had arms, one having been rid off mid-bicep, the other at the forearm. He stared at least in what he thought was their general direction, and spoke._

 _"_ _So, this is how it ends… decades of planning, only to end with three miserable brats!"_

 _They did not respond to him, glaring at him, resolute to end this long conflict. They started gathering their energy. The dark-haired one readied an arrow made of pure black flames, the pink-haired one charged a fist of pure chakra, and the blonde-haired one harnessed the pure slicing power of wind. As one, they launched their attacks, and the three became one, chakra, wind and flames rushing towards the man._

 _The man, knowing his fate was inevitable, simply bowed his head, and the attack impacted. He was incinerated by the flames, impacted by the chakra, and slashed by the wind. The attack was so great that nothing was left, reshaping the very land itself, leaving only a giant crater._

 _With that, Uchiha Madara, the schemer who started this war, the traitor who betrayed his best firend, and the liar who deceived everyone, a man who had escaped death's clutches numerous times, was dead._

 _These three, Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura, and Uzumaki Naruto went on to become famous, hailed as the next Densetsu no Sannin, the Three Great Shinobi, and each performed glorious and noble deeds as time went on._

 _However, it is rumored that Madara cursed them, stating as his last words, "Rejoice in your hope now, it will not last. I will find a way to return. Not even Death himself will hold me back. Project Tsuki no Me will succeed, and this world will know peace!"_

 _As time went on, the shinobi villages faded into the background as magic was discovered, which was found to be far more versatile than chakra. Magicians gradually began taking more and more jobs from shinobi, and they lost power. Eventually the Five Elemental countries were absorbed and became the lands we know today, such as Fiore, daimyos being replaced with kings._

"Hey, Gildarts, but what about Madara's curse! What happens next!"

Gildarts laughed, glancing at the boy who interrupted his story. They were out in the forest on a little camping trip. He looked at the salmon-haired boy, the one he thought of as a surrogate son, with sharp canines, wild hair, and fierce determination in his eyes, blazing just like the campfire. "That was the end of the story Natsu! It's just an old folktale! No one can actually escape death!" He laughed as he took another swig of his beer.

"Ohhhhh! But it can't just end like that!"

"It's alright Natsu, it was still a great campfire story!" Interjected another one of their guests, a white-haired girl with brilliant blue eyes, this was Lissana Strauss, one of the Strauss siblings. "Right?", As she pulled the dreaded puppy-dog eyes, Natsu looked away, blushing.

"Gildarts just laughed even harder, "Ah, young love."

Natsu turned, blushing even harder, "No, it's not anything like that Gildarts! Don't get anything in your head!"

"Nothing like that, Natsu?" Said Lisanna, starting to cry, "I thought we were gonna get married!"

"What, I uh, I was just kidding! Yeah! Kidding!" Natsu stammered, flailing around around trying to calm her down.

"Okay! We'll be together forever!" Lisanna's 180 mood swing causing both Natsu and Gildarts to sweat-drop.

Gildarts just looked to the sky, 'Just a story…' he thought.

* * *

Timeskip

Fairy Tail's guild building stands strong and proud, its unique design reminiscent of some Indian architecture making it stand out in comparison to the average regular buildings of Magnolia. A testament to the unique and powerful mages who also make a living within its halls. Right now it is within the midst of a powerful storm, one it has not seen in many years. Rain falls in sheets, while powerful lightning and thunder flash and crash in the sky. It's almost like the heavens themselves are warring with themselves. However, another war seems to be on its start within the hall itself. One that will change the course of the land of Fiore forever.

"Wh-what do you mean Lisanna's dead?" stammered Natsu Dragneel, now grown into a fine young man. He was dressed in a sleeveless open vest, leaving his chest and arms bare, with white baggy pants tied down mid-calf, his ever-present scarf on his neck. He was currently facing Lisanna's older siblings, Beast Arm Elfman, and Mirajane, the She-Devil. But, he can't believe their current state. Both are bandaged completely, Elfman's right eye especially, and Mirajane's left arm. Lisanna, the only person who ever mattered in his life besides Igneel, though was missing. Everyone in the guildhall was also distressed, but none so much as these two with Natsu, but each with very different reactions.

Elfman was barely able to get the words out, he was crying so much, "She, it- the mission went wrong, I- she was killed!"

Natsu stared at them with rage, his coal black eyes turning a furious shade of crimson red, cold and lifeless. For the remaining Strauss siblings, nothing was ever scarier in their lives. They were both used to seeing the full of energy and life, almost windows into the soul of Fairy Tail. Now it seemed that they were staring into the eyes of God himself, mercilessly judging them for salvation or damnation.

Natsu walked over to Elfman, slowly but surely, his feet scorching the floorboards, while everyone seemed suffocated by the oppressive aura he was giving off. Elfin was scared shitless, mainly because Natsu was walking so calmly. "Damn it! That's the way Erza walks when she's mad!" Elfman thought helplessly as Natsu reached him. He picked him by the throat with one hand, and looking him dead in his eyes, and asked as Elfman desperately tried to breathe.

"Who killed her?

Elfman stared at his judge with fear, suspecting what might happen if he told him.

"Maybe you didn't hear me the first time. Who killed her?"

Elfman stammered out, "It was- it was.."

Natsu threw him to the ground, lighting his fists on fire, "Damn it! Who killed her? WHO KILLED LISANNA?!"

Elfman just broke out, "I did!"

Everyone gasped, while Natsu's hands fell to his sides.

Mira tried to interject, "No Elfman! It was my fault, I didn't weaken it enough! I-"

"NO!" Elfman shouted, even while in terrible pain, "I was the one who wasn't strong enough! It was my fault! I should have been able to subdue the Beast. I was her older brother. I wasn't enough of a man! It was my duty to protect her, and I failed!"

Natsu just gazed at them, as his aura flared, overwhelming everyone in the guild, Makarov, Erza, and Gray who had all been watching, too shocked to do anything got ready to defend them, even as the heat felt it would melt them to a puddle, when it faded.

Everyone breathed, as the aura's vanishing felt like a mountain had been removed from crushing them, as Natsu turned to leave.

For Elfman and Mirajane, Natsu turning to leave without a single word was almost as bad as seeing Lisanna flying, struck by the beast, seeming frozen in time itself.

"You are lucky." Natsu said, his back still turned to them, the words seeming colder than even Gray's ice. "Were you not her siblings, I would have ended you myself, but that's not what she would have wanted."

Elfman tried to plead, "But Lis-"

"DONT SAY HER NAME!" Natsu raged, "You both lost that right when you failed to protect her! You promised no harm would come to her!"

Elfman and Mirajane could only stare, each clutching the other, knowing all too well he was right. Natsu then just walked out, as they each broke into tears, hugging the last family they had.

Natsu stood at the hut where he made so many childhood memories with Lisanna: where they had raised Happy, where they had agreed to get married, where they had multiple slumber parties and picnics. The skies itself seemed to reflect his mood, pouring rain as if to let fall the endless tears he never could. He would always be strong for her, no matter what.

He looked around, and found what he was seeking. A wide, tall boulder, perfect for shaping into what he needed. He set to work at once, lighting his fists on fire to mold the sturdy rock, the fire sizzling in the rain, but never going out. Thus was the power of Fire Dragon Slayer Maho.

Natsu worked tirelessly for several hours, despite being soaked to the bone, but he was finally finished. A grave for Lisanna, near their hut. It was what she would have wanted. It was elaborately done, carved with the Fairy Tail logo she loved so much above her name,.

 _Lisanna Strauss_

 _Beloved Mother and Lover to Animals_

 _X768-X782_

After he had finished carving, Natsu looked to the hut and slowly walked to it. He lit his hands on fire once more, and reached out to the hut. His memories would perish along with it. His maho would burn it no matter the weather. He began to set his hand on the hut and-

 _"_ _Now I wouldn't do that if I were you."_

"Who said that?" Natsu yelled, extinguishing his hand.

"I did."

"Who? Where are you?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm you, or at least a part of you."

"Wh-what?" Natsu stammered still trying to find the voice.

"You want to see her, don't you? After all, the grief you felt at her loss is the reason I woke up in the first place, I could feel it in your very soul, my soul, OUR soul."

"Who are you?!" Natsu yelled.

"Now, you are getting troublesome. Lets go somewhere less conspicuous. Don't want people to think you've gone off the deep end or something like that."

And Natsu felt the world go black. He looked around and saw nothing, just overwhelming darkness. "Where am I?!"

"You're in your subconscious, in the realm where mind and soul intertwine."

Natsu heard steps and turned to them, at least where he thought they were. He saw what looked to be an ancient warrior. He wore form-fitting black clothing, and over that he wore red armor, which covered his chest, legs, and arms. He had a wild mane of black hair, and a small on his face, but when Natsu got to his eyes, he gasped. They were red, with three tome surrounding the pupil. They were so hypnotic…

"You want to know who I am right?"

Natsu barely registered the question, but he answered regardless, "Ye-yeah."

"It's simple, I am you."

"What do you mean?"

"You are my reincarnation. You should know the story. Even after death, my sharingan still worked, and I hypnotized the Shinigami into letting me keep myself, even in reincarnation. The only drawback was that it put my consciousness into a deep sleep, but your grief woke me up."

"Yo-you, you're -"

"That's right. I am Madara Uchiha, and I have returned from the dead once more. Now, Lisanna, you want to see her again, right?"

"Yes! No matter what!"

"Well then," Madara's smile grew even wider, and if possible, more sinister, "Let me tell you about a plan of mine, one I call Tsuki no Me…"

* * *

 **DUN DUN DUN!**

 **I hope you enjoyed it. Remember, please don't hesitate to review. The more ideas and critiques you give, the better I can turn them out. So please review, or I will send Amaterasu after you...**

 **Cheers!**

 **Shinigami**


	2. Chapter 2

**Sugar Honey Iced Tea! This is my largest chapter yet! And it took forever! Of course I also stubbornly refuse to write chapters less than 2,000 words, so that might be a contribution to it... Anyway, a minor OC warning. I do apologize if that isn't your cup of tea, but with the direction I'm taking this story, I unfortunately can't avoid it. Regardless, I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

"Blah" Regular Speech

'Blah' Thought

 _'Blah'_ Telepathic Speech

" **Blah** " Biju speech

 **'Blah'** Biju thought

 **Disclaimer: I neither own FT nor Naruto, they are the brain-children of Kishimoto-dono and Mashima-dono.**

 **Oh, and I almost forgot! Thank you to M00nPhase, Titan, and Lord Deuce for reviewing! They weren't burned alive in Amaterasu! Enjoy!**

* * *

Three figures were walking into the Fairy Tail guild. The first was a dark-haired man, noticeably not wearing a shirt. He was quite well-built, with a blue Fairy Tail guild mark on his right pectoral. The next figure was…. a flying, talking blue cat. It had a green knapsack, and underneath that a green Fairy Tail guild mark. Finally was a blonde girl, looking like she was wearing a cheerleading outfit. She had a black whip, and a set of silver and golden keys. She had no guild mark on her yet, but she was eager to get one. These people were Gray Fullbuster, Happy the cat, and Lucy Heartfilia.

Lucy was excited. She was finally going to be able to join the guild of her dreams! She just wished that the people leading her weren't a stripper and a flying cat. They had eagerly opened the door, and she looked in, just as a table nearly decapitated her. "Kya!" She fell back on her butt, and then scrambled to get up. She saw the guild was utter chaos, nearly looking like a furniture, glass, and people tornado. She saw that the bar was relatively untouched, so she scrambled like a thirsty man to water to safety. 'I guess this explains why they destroy everything…' She thought. She turned to ask Gray what was going on, only to see him jump in and flying kick some random guy in the face.

"What the hell was that for Gray?!" The weasel-faced guy asked, nursing his face.

"The Salamander information you gave me was false!" Gray responded, quite annoyed.

"I told you it was only a rumor you idiot!" He yelled back.

"Why you-!" As Grey proceeded to punch him across the room, knocking him into Elfman, and restarting the fight with new fire.

Lucy just sighed at the new chaos, and sulked at the bar table. "Is it always like this?" "Oh you must be new." Lucy looked up to see one of her idols, Mirajane Strauss. She was always the pin-up in the Sorcerer's Weekly! "Yes. It's always like this. Besides-" Lucy screamed as Mirajane got decked by her giant hulk of a brother. "It's fun, isn't it?" As her soul flew out of her, Lucy scrambled to try to put it back in.

Finally she met Master Makarov, who turned out to be a rather scrawny man for such an imposing appearance. He did put an end to the fight and give an impressive pep talk though. Lucy continued talking with Mirajane after she had gotten her guild stamp, talking about their various misadventures at Hargeon Port. Mirajane was laughing the entire time, especially as Lucy got to the part where Aquarius ended up destroying the port. Finally, it was Lucy's turn to ask Mirajane.

"Hey, Gray was searching for someone at Hargeon, who was it, uh, Salamander? Who is he?" Lucy asked, but regretted it when Mirajane immediately looked down.

"He… was a dear friend. Th-there was an accident, and he left. That was three years ago. We've been searching for him since." After Natsu had left, things hadn't been the same. Mirajane lost her magic, and Elfman dedicated himself to the mantra of MAN!

However, Lucy decided not to press the issue more, when she heard Gray slam one of the missions into the guild mission board. She turned and saw him comfort a small child who was crying about his dad. "That's Romeo. His dad took a mission, and he hasn't returned yet." Mirajane said.

"Why is Gray so passionate about that?" Lucy was confused.

"Macao was our friend's teacher. So it's kind of a personal stake for us."

Lucy decided to follow Gray and Happy, heading to Mt. Hakobe. As they headed there, a figure dressed in a cloak was heading into Magnolia. He silently walked through the city, rather inconspicuous to the people, but that was what he wanted them to see, using a genjutsu to mask his presence. He headed to the outskirts of the city, and into the neighboring forest, finally arriving at his destination, a simple cottage, with the sign Natsu and Happy's House.

He simply opened the door. It was never kept locked. After all, who would break into, much less find a house in the woods? He simply looked around. Aside from evidence that Happy lived there every now and then, it was rather dusty, and didn't show much evidence of life.

They smiled. 'Perfect. Time for some secret renovations.'

* * *

Lucy and Gray had arrived back from Mt. Hakobe with an injured Macao, much to the joy of a little Romeo. They had gone their separate ways afterwards, and Lucy got settled into her new apartment. She reflected on their adventures while taking a shower, then walked out, only to find Gray only his boxers lying on her bed. After kicking him in a… uncomfortable place, she got dressed and then explained the basics of Celestial Spirit maho, forming a contract with her newest spirit, which she called Plue. It was a nice night, at least until Happy burst in through the window screaming, "Lucy! Gray!"

Both stood up quickly and Gray quickly spoke, "What's the matter Happy?!"

Happy was quite scared, "There's a strange guy in our house! I don't know what to do!" Gray at least understood Happy's plight. He was still a kid after all, who had essentially lost his parents, both Natsu and… her. "Alright, lead us there!"

"Aye-san!"

Happy led them out into the forest where the cottage was. Lucy simply wondered who the hell would live out in a forest. "That's because he lived in the forest as a kid with his adopted father."

"Huh?" Lucy said, interrupted out of her thoughts. "Natsu lived in the forest as a kid, and he didn't want to change that, so he built a house out here, and lived out here, at least, until he left." Gray said, seemingly knowing her thoughts. 'Natsu, so that's Salamander's name…' Lucy pondered that until they got to the cottage, which Lucy noticed seemed ironically out of a fairytale.

They ducked down low when they saw a light was on, with the shadow of a figure moving back on forth inside. Gray motioned to Lucy to remain silent as they slowly moved to the door. Lucy stayed behind as Gray grabbed the front door's knob and silently twisting it, swiftly opened it and jumped in, "Okay! Who the hell are you and what are you doing here!" He yelled to the cloaked figure. This was his friend's house and no one was going to barge into it!

Lucy quickly followed in as well. She might not be as physically strong, but she at least knew how to use a whip! (I'm not certain she should be so proud of that…).

The figure started waving his arms back and forth, "It's not what you think! I live here!"

"Hell no! My friend lives here." Gray started putting his hands together for his Ice Make Magic.

"You mean me?" The figure pulled off his hood. Gray blinked. Salmon hair? Check. Sharp canines? Check. Black eyes? Check. Scarf? Check. Was he hallucinating? "NATSU?!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. Natsu grinned. Lucy just face-palmed. Tomorrow was going to be interesting…

* * *

The next day at the Fairy Tail guild, Gray and Lucy had practically ran to the guild. Although it was more Gray dragging Lucy while Happy excitedly flew by. They burst through the doors. And ran straight to the bar. Mirajane noticed their state, "Oya? Did something happen you two?" She asked as she polished her ever-faithful glass.

Gray started "You won't believe it Mirajane! Guess who's ba-" "BOOM!" The wall of the guild exploded.

Everyone looked to the wall, getting their various magics ready, only to jaw drop at who they saw. Nobody had seen or heard from him in three years! It was Natsu Dragneel, who still looked nearly the same. However, there were a few differences. He had cut his hair shorter, so it wasn't as wild, coming only to his forehead now. He had also traded his vest for a long coat, with long sleeves, although the right sleeve was slightly cut along the upper arm to show his guild mark. His scarf and pants were still the same, though.

Everyone mobbed him, asking where he's been, what he's been doing, but Mirajane and Elfman stood back, still remembering his attitude the day he left. Natsu took notice of this, and walked towards them. Every guild member saw this and held their breath as he walked towards the Strauss siblings. They shook slightly with fear, remembering how fearsome he was that day, seeming almost judge, jury, and executioner. Natsu simply walked in front of them, giving them a blank stare, until he smiled and waved, then walked off.

Everyone started rejoicing, while Elfman and Mira collapsed in relief. Makarov showed up and welcomed Natsu back, and as usual, another Fairy brawl and party started up, with mostly everyone getting drunk and passing out. The prodigal fairy had finally returned.

The next morning, while everyone was still passed out drunk, Natsu was staring at the mission board, looking occupied. The truth, however, was that he was having an intense mental discussion.

' _Why did you decide to return suddenly?_ ' Madara Uchiha asked.

' _Sudden nostalgia perhaps. Maybe because it was Lisanna'a favorite place._ '

' _How do you intend to continue the plan though? There are still important pieces left. Searching for them will eventually get them suspicious. And they will oppose you, you know, all in the name of they false peace. I know this is true. It's exactly how I died._ '

' _I'll think of something. All that's left is to find them, and the best way of coming across them is by taking missions, plus I get paid at the same time. All the hide-outs are set up, and easily accessible. We have the most important piece as well._ '

' _Hmph. We still need the keys however_.'

' _Don't worry so much, old man._ ' Natsu smiled at the invisible tick mark he could sense appear on Madara. He was glad to finally be back. Although he did nearly kill Gray when he burst into his house. That certainly wouldn't do any good now anyway. ' _Oh, how does this mission look_?'

Madara looked at what he could see through Natsu's vision. 'T _HAT'S a mage's mission? I've never seen one so specific or absurd. I'd almost rather take a D-class mission, or hunt down that stupid Tora…_ '

' _That's what you think. He has the keys. Can't use our little toy without them_.'

' _Now when did you come across that information? And when exactly were you planning on sharing_?'

Natsu grinned, ' _Oh a few bribes here and there, a couple death threats, and a few favors. Was saving it just for a special occasion. Now we just need that one new mage, what was her name again, Luigi_?'

' _Lucy. Luigi's a boy name_.'

' _Whatever. Oh here she comes now._ '

Lucy was walking over to get a mission, when she heard "Oy, Luigi!" "It's Lucy!" She shouted back, only to see who she was yelling at. "Oops! Sorry. Didn't mean to shout…"

"No problem! Hey, how would you like to take a mission? It's offering 200,000 jewel."

Obviously Lucy jumped at the offer, although she did regret it when she had to dress as a maid, and then get insulted by a fat old perverted duke. Natsu's motion sickness more than made up for it though. Happy and Gray, who tagged along, explained the basics of Natsu's magic, along with the side effects.

It all ended with Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Happy heading to break in. Natsu melted through the glass in order to open the door the inside. Natsu just saw Gray looking on and grinned. "What? You can't expect me to be gone three years and not pick up a few things."

"Including breaking and entering? Anyway, remind me why we're here again? All I know is that Lucy mentioned 200,000 jewels, so I was in."

"2 millions jewels now actually. The mission requester, uh, Kaby I think, raised the reward when we got there." Gray simply dropped his jaw. "Anyway, our goal is to find and destroy a book, Daybreak. This guy, Duke Everlue, has it." Natsu continued.

"Whatever Flamebrain."

"What'd you say, Ice Princess?!"

"Can we just get to this so I can get revenge on that stupid Duke!" Lucy interrupted.

"Aye-san!" Guess who.

They all broke in the mansion, and after a hilarious scare of Lucy by Happy, they were ready to proceed. At some point Gray and Happy started playing ninja, which had Natsu laughing mentally at the irony of. At least until the ugly made brigade showed its ugly face. One Karyu no Yokugeki: Fire Dragon's Wave, later, and they were all down for the count, including the head brute.

Finally they got to the library, so Gray and Lucy started looking for the book. "Oy, Natsu, do you have any idea what this book looks like? Natsu?" Gray asked looking back, only to find Natsu was gone. "Where'd he go now?"

"Ah, here's the book!" Lucy grabbed a book with a golden cover, Daybreak. Unbeknownst to both of them, they were being watched by a silent figure.

Meanwhile, with Natsu

Natsu had walked off quietly in pursuit of his own agenda. He was scanning all of Duke Everlue's rooms, looking for the specific objects in questions. So far he had a found an old stack of some kind of Icha-Icha series, whatever the hell that was, a gold plated toilet, and a room that whose contents he would prefer not to describe. " _Luigi was right when she said that this guy was perverted…"_ He said to no one in particular.

' _Lucy_.'

' _Whatever! Now if I were a perverted old duke, where would I head a precious set of antiques…_ ' He opened a door that led to a giant treasure room. 'Bingo.'

' _Book_?' Madera asked.

' _No, it's a figure of speech, and, you know what, shut up!_ ' After a few minutes of digging, searching, and frustration, he came across an old box, with the kanji for 'red' and 'moon' on it. He opened it and smiled. Inside was a set of nine rings, inscribed with the kanji Rei (zero), Ao (blue), Bya (white), Shu (scarlet), Gen (mysterious), Nan (south), Hoku (north), San (three), and Gyoku (king). 'So the tenth is still missing.' Natsu thought. He pocketed the Gyoku ring, and quickly pulled out a scroll and sealed the rest in. He then sensed a presence behind him, and quickly turned around.

Two men were standing behind him, one a large hulking brute, the other resembling an Asian martial artist, carrying a big-ass frying pan. 'Is he compensating for something?' Natsu thought. ' _Focus_.' Madera chastened.'

'We are the Vanish Brothers, hired to protect this mansion from intruders, and you are trespassing. Prepare to die." Natsu had heard of them both during his travels and trainings. He had certainly been involved in some less than legal occurrences himself, so it was no surpise he knew the Vanish Brothers of the Southern Wolves mercenary guild. He grinned savagely. It had been a while since he had seen some decent combat, so he was eager to fight. He pulled out two hidden kunai, "Let's begin!" And rushed forward.

* * *

Lucy and Gray were debating on what to do with the book when the silent figure rushed forward and snatched the book out of her hands. "Hey! That's ours!"

The figure, now revealed to be a teenage boy laughed, "Technically, it's that fat old duke's, but you stole it from him, and I stole from you, so I guess that makes it mine!"

Lucy and Gray took in the boy's appearance, he looked like he was about the same age as them, with oddly heterochromatic blue eyes, one being a darker blue than the other. He was a dirty blonde with messy hair, tied in a braid behind him, and wore a form-fitting shirt that went about mid-forearm with the rest being tied down by bandages, the same with his pants. He also wore a white jacket with a strange symbol on its back, looking similar to clouds. Finally, he wore what looked like combat sandals as well.

"Who are you, and why are you taking that book?" Gray demanded.

"Name's Hyo Nii, and I got word of a pretty good offer for this book, so I thought I'd cash in on that." The now named Hyo replied

"Now hold just a minute! None of you are getting rid of that book! It's mine! All mine!"

They looked around trying to find the source of the noise when a hand burst from the ground trying to grasp Hyo's leg. "Whoa!" And he backflipped quickly, still holding onto the book as Duke Everlue burst from the ground. "You're a quick one, eh? It doesn't matter. I still want my book!"

"No way old man! I stole it fair and square!"

"No we stole it, and you stole it from us!"

"Yeah, meaning it's mine now! Anyway," Hyo finished, making some one handed signs, "Katon: Nezumi Kedama! Fire Style: Mouse Hairball!" And he spit a blue fireball that oddly resembled a mouse which then split into multiple projectiles. Everyone dodged, except Duke Everlue, who was quickly fried by it. Hyo went to escape, until he caught sight of Happy. Instantly, his love of cats took over and he attempted to glomp Happy, (you probably already know why he likes cats so much). At least until he heard, "Ice Make: Pillar!"

"Aw, damn it." The explosion rocked the library, as Duke Everlue grabbed a golden key.

* * *

Back with Natsu, the scene was quite different. The Vanish Brothers were in two separate places, while fires of various colors raged across the treasure room, molten gold flowing everywhere. Both of them were dead. The larger one had numerous kunai impaled in him, while the shorter one simply had the handle to his pan shoved **through** him. Natsu made a few hand signs and "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu! Great Fireball Jutsu!" And incinerated both the bodies. He proceeded to wake off, at least until the giant pink-haired maid burst through the floor and grabbed him. Natsu prepared to counter-attack, until they both were suddenly teleported to the library.

"Huh?!" Everyone seemed to say.

Natsu tried to regain his bearings and kicked the giant maid, apparently Virgo was her name. Only to barely dodge a burst of blue flame. He turned to face whoever launched only to see Hyo, and his eyes widened in recognition, 'That's..' He thought. ' _Later_.' Madara commanded. ' _Deal with this now_.' Natsu nodded in silent understanding, and prepared his strongest attack. "Karyu no Koen! Fire Dragon's Brilliant Radiance!" Only to hear "Katon: Gonezumi Kedama! Fire Style: Great Mouse Hairball!" He turned to see Hyo launching a giant blue fireball of his own. Both of their attacks merged into one and exploded destroying much of the house at the same time! Hyo also felt the book get stolen from his grasp, and turned to see Natsu throwing the book to Lucy.

He got ready to complain, but Gray interjected "Uh, not to rain on the parade or anything, but we might want to run before the army comes." So they decidedly booked it.

Afterwards they had started talking with their strange new companion, who Lucy, Gray, and Happy liked instantly. Natsu just looked at him intently, much to Hyo's discomfort. "So you're descended from an old clan, and that's why you also were that strange emblem on your back?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah, my ancestor was Yugito Nii, and this symbol belonged to Kumogakure, our ancestral home. Nowadays, it's not as easy to get jobs, so we do what we can."

"So that's why you tried to take our job, huh?" Lucy looked down dejectedly.

"Ah, It's alright. Plenty more where those came from! Anyway, I better head home. Don't want mum to worry!" And with that, he vanished in a puff of smoke. Then Lucy slammed her fist into her palm.

"Shoot! I forgot to ask him about those strange techniques of his! I've never seen magic made with hand signs before!"

"Who knows," Gray responded, "You might get another chance to soon. What do you think Flamebr- Where the hell did he go again!" Gray shouted, finding Natsu had disappeared again, only for a note to fly down, which he swiftly grabbed and read.

 _Dear Happy, Luigi, and Ice Princess,_

 _I heard a rather credible rumor about Igneel in the neighboring town so I'm going to investgate it. Be back in about a week. Go finish the mission, you can keep the reward money._

 _Sincerely, Natsu._

Gray simply crushed the paper in his hands, a giant tick mark appearing on him, "Natsu! When you get back I'm gonna kill you!"

* * *

Hyo followd the simple path home, as he thought about what happened. 'Man, I'm disappointed that I couldn't get the reward money! That would have been so helpful! But, they were nice people, don't you think, Matatabi?"

' _Indeed, my little kitten._ ' The giant biju responded from within.

' _Oy! I told you to stop calling me kitten!_ '

' _Whatever kitten!'_ Matatabi simply purred with amusement. It had been so many years ago that the war had finally ended, and eventually even Jinchuriki faded from history. The biju were still kept sealed, but it was so their existence could remain hidden. The downside is that now, most Jinchuriki never met as well. It had been so long since she had any contact with her brothers or sisters, even longer after Kurama disappeared. She rumininated on this a little while longer until she felt a presence she thought she had dies out ages ago. ' _Kitten! Be careful! Something's coming!'_

Hyo was instantly on full alert, extending his nails out full, ready to pounce on the threat. 'Matatabi's never this alert. Whoever's coming must be powerful…' He looked around alert, until space started to distort around him. He quickly jumped back.

The space began spiraling into a singular point as something came out. Hyo looked at the person in confusion, but Matatabi's eyes widened in horror. The man had short spiky black hair, and over that wore a orange mask that followed a spiral pattern into the right eye. Finally, he wore gloves and over his clothes wore a black cloak with a chin-high collar, and red clouds emblazoned on it.

"Who the hell are you?" Hyo asked.

"My name's Tobi!" The strange man said.

" **He even speaks the same way! The Akatsuki!** " Matatabi shouted in horror, but Hyo didn't hear her.

"Why are you following me?"

"It's simple! I'm here to capture you. You have something I want!" Tobi responded.

"Nice try! Katon: Nezumi Kedama! Fire Style: Mouse Hairball!" launching a shotgun fireball at Tobi and then charged forward. The fireballs impacted, but he quickly rushed through the smoke and slashed. He landed, and then swiftly looked back, but he found no corpse. "Where'd he go?"

' _ **Kitten, under you**_!'

Hyo looked down and saw a bunch of explosive mines underneath him. He shunshined away just in time as they exploded. "Explosive Landmine Jutsu!" Tobi shouted, appearing suddenly behind him, so Hyo responded with a slash, only to find his attacks when through him! Tobi made a hand seal, so Hyo retreated again, "Whack-a-mole Jutsu!" Hyo braced himself, but nothing came. "Sorry, that's all this technique does…" Tobi rubbed the back of his head, but it only pissed off Hyo. He was the jinchuriki of the Nibi no Nekomata, and he was not going to take this insult!

' _Matatabi, lend me your power!_ '

' _ **Hyo, if this is who I think it is, he's out of your league!**_ '

' _I don't care_!'

Matatabi sighed, ' ** _Very well then._** '

Hyo became enveloped in a glowing red aura of chakra as his pupils became slitted like a cat's, and his canines sharpened. He rushed forward, and began slashing at Tobi over and over, but all his attacks kept fading through. Hyo was only getting more and more enraged. "Why won't you take me seriously!" However, this time Tobi had to dodge, ' _ **Now Hyo! He should be vulnerable!'**_ Matatabi commanded, so Hyo attacked with his chakra tail across Tobi's face. He flew back through the forest, crashing through many trees.

Hyo felt the air get more oppressive, as the air was filled with a foul aura. "You want me to take you seriously?" Tobi asked, his voice a lot darker.

'What the hell? His personality changed!' Hyo thought.

Tobi got up, part of his mask falling down in the process to reveal both of his eyes. He was still looking down though. "I'll let you have it then!" he looked up, revealing red eyes with three tomoe surrounding the pupil, which quickly morphed into a design of three tomoe in a spiraling circle with three bars extending between the tomoe.

' _ **Hyo! Go to full biju mode! You won't stand a chance without it!**_ '

' _Understood_!' Hyo went to all fours as blue flames surrounded him in a brilliant flames grew higher and higher until the Nibi no Nekomata was revealed in all its brilliance. Matatabi stood counter Tobi, and shouted " **Madara Uchiha! I don't know how you are still alive, but you will die now!** " She started charging the most powerful technique of any the Biju, the Bijudama, the Tailed Beast Bomb, and fired.

"Shit!" Tobi quickly prepared his own jutsu as the sphere approached.

BOOM!

The explosion was seen for miles, catching the notice of one scarlet-haired mage as she quickly ran to the location.

The smoke began to clear and Matatabi quickly searched for any remains, and if she found him still alive, she would maul him for what he did so many years ago.

' _Matatabi, who is this guy? He's got you so riled up!'_ Hyo asked

She growled, ' ** _Uchiha Madara._** '

' _What! Didn't he die years ago_?!'

' _ **T**_ _ **hat's what I thought as well, apparently he found another way to cheat death, but I- ungh!**_ ' As a giant skeletal hand punched her across the now devastated field.

' _Matatabi_!'

Trees were then knocked down, pinning her. Matatabi looked up, only to see the ultimate Uchiha technique, the Susanoo! It was preparing a giant arrow of Amaterasu flames! Matatabi struggled trying to get out from the pin, but it was too late, Tobi released the arrow. "Enton: Kagutsuchi! Blaze Release: Added Tool Earth Lord!" The explosion severely damaged Matatabi, so she was unprepared when Tobi appeared, looking her straight in the eyes, " **Shit**!" "Tsukuyomi!" Within a few seconds Matatabi collapsed, and dissolved, leaving only the unconscious body of Hyo.

Within a few seconds, Tobi collapsed to one new as the rest of his mask crumbled, revealing the face of one Natsu Dragneel, albeit with magically dyed black hair. He gripped his arm, and crying out in pain, set it.

'That was tougher… than I expected…'

' _Hmph. you were facing one of the nine Biju after all. Of course, you underestimated the jinchuriki. You wanted to fight, rather than go for the sneak attack!_ ' Madera criticized Natsu, who only remained silent. ' _Ch. Report to the hideout. The explosions are bound to attract somebody._ '

Natsu stumbled over to the body, and picked it up, then teleported away. Right at that moment, the scarlet-haired mage arrived as well. She looked around, searching for any survivors, but finding none, swiftly reported back to her guild. She had bigger problems to worry about, specifically one Eisenwald guild.

Natsu however, arrived in a cave, where he rather uncaringly dropped Hyo's body. He pulled out the Akatsuki ring he had, the one with the kanji for King, and put it on his left thumb. "Now then." He began to make signs: I, Inu, Tori, Saru, Hitsuji. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu! Summoning Jutsu!" And with a great burst of smoke, a giant hulking figure appeared. It had two hands facing palm and fingers up, and noticeably nine closed eyes. It also had numerous protrusions from its back, with a scroll held in its mouth. This was the Gedo Mazo, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, and the husk of the Juubi, the Ten-Tailed Monster.

Natsu leapt onto the left hand's thumb, and began yet another string of hand seals, leaving Hyo's body in front of it. The scroll in the mouth fell down, as blue energy emerged, taking the form of nine dragons. Natsu finished his hand seals, and announced his technique, as the kanji for king appeared on the thumb he stood on, "Fuinjutsu: Genryu Kyufujin! Sealing Jutsu: Phantom Dragons Nine Consuming Seal!"

* * *

 **Phew! All done! I would have had this up yesterday, but I couldn't upload the entire file! I had to copy and paste the first half, and then edit it to put the other half in. Has anyone else had problems with this?**

 **As for Natsu's new hairstyle, its only slightly longer than what Tobi's was, in case you had trouble visualizing it.**

 **Anyway, as you might have guessed, Hyo is the OC. His name means Leopard, (I couldn't find any other good cat names in Japanese...). And he's the new jinchuriki of the Two-Tailed Cat. I have it so that the jinchuriki are relatively unknown now, continued as descendants of the former jinchuriki, and remnants of the old shinobi villages. If you want more backstory, just ask! I'm sure I can come up with something. Although I would like to use some canon characters as well as jinchuriki, I can't really think of any good characters that would fit the** **biju. If you have any suggestions, leave them in the reviews!**

 **Again, please review! Or I'll send the Jiggly Butt Gang after you... Cheers!**

 **Shinigami**


	3. Chapter 3

**Argh! I tried to get this up last night, but I kept coming up with an error message! Well, anyways. I hope you enjoy! Here it is! The largest chapter I have written yet!**

 **Disclaimer: Hiro Mashima-Dono, Masashi Kishimoto-dono. Enough said.**

"Blah"-Speech

'Blah' Thought

 _'Blah'-Telepathy_

 **"Blah"-** **Biju Speech**

 **Thank you to M00nPhase, frozem1, Sithlord King, Ryujomaru15, Batman78, and Guest 1 for reviewing! Everyone else gets gassed by the Jiggle Butt Gang!**

* * *

It was a nice and peaceful day in the land of Fiore, as a peaceful breeze blew through the land. However, appearances can be deceiving, especially if one looks under the earth. Not far from Magnolia, in a hidden cave, a tragedy is beginning to unfold. One that will start a chain of events that will determine the very freedom of mankind.

In this cavern, Natsu Dragneel, Fairy Tail mage, and reincarnation of the most treacherous shinobi, Uchiha Madara is carrying out this plan, standing on top of the Gedo Mazo, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, extracting the Nibi no Nekomata, the Two-Tailed Demon Cat, from its current jinchuriki, Hyo Nii, descendent of famous Kumogakure Shinobi, Yugito Nii.

However, capturing the the Jinchuriki was not without its consequences. Natsu's Akatsuki outfit was battered, and ripped, and he himself was just about ready to pass out. He was barely able to even continue to sealing, and was just about to falter until he heard the voice of his mentor. ' _Don't stop. You will seal the biju before any rest._ '

' _But it's been nearly seven days! I'm just about ready to pass out!_ '

' _That's your own fault. You chose to fight the biju head-on, instead of trying to take it out swiftly. This is your punishment. I suppose you'll take care to learn from your mistakes next time._ '

' _Couldn't we just get more members?_ '

Madara sighed, ' _It's wishful thinking, as sealing the biju was much more efficient with all ten members, but chakra is needed to power the Gedo Mazo. I do not know what kind of effects magic would have on it, and the statue is too valuable to risk it. I doubt any remaining shinobi would be willing to aid in the revival of the Akatsuki and the initiation of Tsuki no Me._ '

' _Fine_.' Natsu looked at the Gedo Mazo to see one of the eyes was almost open. 'At least we're almost done.' He cut off his conversation with Madara there, and lost himself in his own thoughts. 'It's just the start. I'll see you again Lisanna. I promise…' He looked at the center of the Gedo Mazo, to see Hyo Nii's body surrounded by the blue sealing jutsu Genryu Kyufujin, Phantom Dragons Nine Consuming Seal, as the red chakra of Matatabi was slowly extracted from him.

Hyo's POV

 _Hyo couldn't feel or see anything. He was just lost in a sea of nothingness. The worst part was that he felt absolutely alone. He always had Matatabi with him, but he couldn't sense her now. He wanted to call her name, to ask where she was, but he couldn't call out, he couldn't even move. All he could do was move his eyes, and even then, that wasn't much. It was just darkness._

 _He just stared out into the oblivion, only to blink confusedly as a small dot of light started to form. 'What is that?' He could only think, as it slowly became brighter and brighter. He shut his eyes at the brightness, only to be engulfed by it. He opened his eyes, and found himself… at home?_

 _'What the hell?' He thought, confused at his surroundings. He recognized his surroundings. His mom's old vase before she sold it to help raise Hyo, the table he accidentally burned down practicing his katon jutsu in the house, and their old cat. It was his house, but his house 11 years ago!_

 _"Mom!" Hyo turned to the door to see him, no, a younger him! He had to have been four or five when this happened. He had forgotten about his old favorite tiger print shirt, or the stuffed animal that he always used to carry. It was a lion, but he always called it Taiga, much to his mom's amusement. It was also when he wore his hair a lot shorter. He could never stand it being short after he hit his teenage years, so he grew it out._

 _'But how?' Hyo could only stare in confusion at the mini him, only for his little copy to run straight through him! 'Wha-, wait, I'm little. There's stuff that hasn't been at my house for ages, and I don't seem to exist. Maybe, these are my memories? But why am I here?' Hyo pondered this further, until he heard a voice that always made him happy._

 _"What is it, dear?" Hyo turned to see his mother, a slightly more older woman. She had settled down later in life, and had Hyo, and despite her age, was always trying to help raise him, even trying to get work, which was hard ever since her leg injury that crippled her as a shinobi. She always needed to have a walking stick after that. But regardless, she was still a very beautiful woman. Her hair had started to turn that silvery color that only blondes could get as they got older, and her face, starting to be covered with wrinkles, still shown with the deep kindness that only mothers could have in her heterochromatic eyes._

 _"Can you tell me another story? Please, please, please, please!" Little Hyo bounced up and down, and Hyo could only wonder how his mother could put up with him._

 _"Very well then. Come sit down on Mommy's lap." she hobbled over to her old recliner, where she slowly and carefully sat down. Hyo eagerly climbed up, but his mother chastened him, "Please be careful Hyo, I'm not as sturdy as I used to be."_

 _"Alright…"_

 _"Now, where we again…" His mother began, looking at the portraits they had. The people on them ranged, from a group of dark-skinned shinobi that all wore a strange hat with the kanji for lightning on it, to another group, among others, a green-haired woman, another black man who wore strange shades, a blonde-haired man with interesting whisker marks, and most prominently, a dirty blonde-haired, fair-skinned woman with dark eyes._

 _She gestured to the fourth picture with the dark-skinned shinobi, and began her story, "That's the Yondaime Raikage, A. He was famous many years ago for the speed at which he could travel. He could use his Raiton to increase his speed to many times a regular man. He was considered the fastest man alive for many years, until Konoha's Yondaime Hokage, the Kiiroi Senkoi, The Yellow Flash, stole that title from him. However, he was still a real juggernaut in battle. He, together with the other Kage of his time, stood together against the greatest foe this world has ever faced, perphaps even worse than the Kuroi Madoshi, Zeref, that the mages nowadays seem to speak of in tales."_

 _She paused to take a breath. "That man was Madara Uchiha. He sought to enslave the world for the sake of peace. However, together with the Kage, and a group of three Konoha Shinobi, they were able to stop the madman, but the madman was not without cost."_

 _She gestured to the other group of portraits, "Madara had killed most of these people, including sadly our ancestor, Yugito Nii, but not before she had left a single heir, who we can proudly call ourselves descendents of. Madara, that man, desired to use the power that each of them possessed, in order to establish his goals and reform the Juubi, but he was stopped."_

 _She finally pointed to the largest picture above them, a blue-flaming two-tailed cat, painted in mid-roar, yet accompanied by Yugito right next to it. Comparing the sizes, the beast was much larger than Yugito, who barely reached the middle of its shin. "That power was the nine biju, of which you see the Two-Tailed Demon Cat. Thanks to the Konoha Shinobi, we now know her name is Matatabi. After being freed from Madara's clutches, she agreed to being resealed, and for her to fade into legend, so that she and her brethren could never again be used for war."_

 _Little Hyo spoke up again, "And she's sealed inside me, right?"_

 _His mother looked at Hyo and smiled, "Yes."_

 _"Cool! Do you think I can talk with her someday?"_

 _His mother gazed off into the distance, "I'm sure you will someday, and I believe that you will be the best of friends."_

 _Hyo watched the scene, with a tender smile on his face. He sincerely loved his mother, and the happiness that he saw on her face always brought him delight. He looked as the scene melted away, and changed into a new one. This one seemed to resemble more of a large hallway, filled partially with water, almost like a sewer, and Hyo recognised this one. It was where he first met Matatabi._

 _He saw himself again, slightly older. He had to have been eight or nine, but he still kept his light-heartedness. Little Hyo peered into the darkness of the hallway, and shouted, "Hello? Is anyone there?"_

 _Little Hyo peered into the darkness again, and sighed, only for rumbling to start traveling across the room. He watched in amazement as a great flaming cat jumped through the hallway, landing with a great flash, and breathing beautiful blue flames. " **Who dares disturb the Nibi!** " It shouted._

 _Little Hyo lifted his hand up eagerly, "I do!"_

 _" **And why should I not eat you like the little morsel you are!** "_

 _Little Hyo started getting a little scared now, and he started stuttering, "U-um, W-well, I'm your Ji-Jinchuriki, s-so I t-thought I might g-get to k-know you…"_

 _The Two-Tailed Cat stood up in all its great glory, " **Then you leave me no choice!** " It thrust its head down, and Hyo shut his eyes in fear, fully expecting to get eaten only to fell something… wet? He opened his eyes to see the Biju, licking him?_

 _"Um, why are you licking me?"_

 _The Nibi seemed to smile, " **What? A mother can't lick her own kitten? Don;t you know anything about cats?** "_

 _"Uh…"_

 _" **Anyway, I'm sorry about that little scare. I just got so bored waiting for you to come. I believe formal introductions are in place. I'm the Nibi no Nekomata, but you can call me Matatabi**."_

 _"I'm Hyo Nii!"_

 _" **N** **ice to meet you! Do you have any goals**?"_

 _"Well, I haven't really thought about it, but I want to be the fastest shinobi ever!"_

 _" **Oh, why's that!** "_

 _"Because the Yondaime Raikage was the fastest until the Yondaime Hokage took that title from it! So I want to get it back for him!"_

 _Matatabi smiled, " **I'm glad you have something.** " She walked over to Hyo and lied down, curling around him like a mother cat would do for its kittens. Hyo hugged her as well, apparently unharmed by her flaming body, and lied down as well. " **I'm sure we'll get along just fine, my little kitten.** "_

 _Hyo nearly felt himself tear up at that. Matatabi, although she was like a mother at times, really was his best friend. He saw several scenes pass through, each where she had always supported him. There was the one right after he had attempted katon for the first time and it exploded in his face. There was the time she helped him after his mother had taken ill, and it was not clear if she would make it or not. Then there was the time she let him cry after his bastard of a father had left them. Finally, the last scene emerged, and it was the most recent one._

 _Hyo, his current age, was talking with his mother about a recent job he found. His mother had recently developed some health problems, making it hard for her to walk, and their bills were really starting to pile up. He was holding out a paper, and he recognized it as the one for retrieving Daybreak._

 _Hyo's mother was trying to talk him out of it, "Are you sure that you want to do this Hyo? It's possible that some mages have already taken it, and I don't want you to get hurt!"_

 _Hyo just waved her off, "I'll be fine mom! Besides if push comes to shove, I've got Matatabi with me! Come on, don't you have a little faith in me?"_

 _She sighed, "I do, it's just… I have a bad feeling, and mothers always trust their instincts."_

 _Hyo placed his hands on her shoulders, "I'll be fine mom. You need this job. If this succeeds, we won't have to worry about your health bills ever again."_

 _She looked resigned, but said, "Just please be careful… Don't leave me…"_

 _Hyo headed out the door, "I promise."_

Third Person POV

Natsu watched as the last of the biju's chakra drained out of Hyo. The second eye looked around a few times before remaining still. The chakra seal dispersed as the statue's mouth closed, and Hyo began to fall.

However, at the same time, Matatabi's desperate voice shouted within the statue, " **Hyo! No, my kitten! Not again!** " Natsu could feel the hostility directed at him, " **Damn you Madara! Damn you straight to hell!** " And the statue's mouth closed.

Hyo fell and he impacted the ground, and slowly lifted his hand up, reaching for the Gedo Mazo, "No…" He stammered out, "Matatabi…" His hand fell to the ground, as he spoke again, "Mom… I'm sorry. I couldn't… keep… my promise…" And his eyes glazed over as his soul departed to oblivion, a single tear running down his face.

Natsu jumped off the Gedo Mazo's hand, but he barely landed, he was so exhausted, and walked slowly towards the corpse, and looked and it. ' _Shouldn't we, I don't know, bury it or something?_ '

Madara replied somewhat coldly, ' _What do you mean by we? You're the one with the body. It doesn't matter regardless. He's dead anyway. Just dispose of it._ '

Natsu walked towards Hyo's body, and picked it up, ' _Fine._ ' And he activated Kamui, teleporting back to Magnolia. The Nibi's sealing had taken long enough that it was now night. He proceeded to head back to Fairy Tail's guild hall, while carrying Hyo's body.

' _Here should be good. Dispose of it._ ' Madara commanded.

'Whatever.' Natsu responded, and dumped Hyo's body in the canal.

' _Make sure you don't let anyone see you. We can't afford to be discovered this early on._ '

' _Already taken care, old man. I set up a genjutsu.'_ Natsu countered.

' _Impressive_.' And he fell silent for now.

Natsu kept walking towards the guild hall, and disposed of his ruined spiral mask. He stopped out of his ruined Akatsuki cloak as well, and threw in up into the air, and breathed in, "Karyu no Hoko! Fire Dragon's Breath!", and launched a breath of fire that incincerated it. Leave no evidence, Madara always said. Although, then again, he did just scorch an entire section of the pavement… 'Man, he's probably gonna harp on me again for that! Damn it! He's worse than Erza!' Natsu raved in his mind. Finally he requiped into a new copy of his outfit, since the old one was destroyed as well.

He arrived at Fairy Tail's hall door, and tried to open it, only to find them locked. 'Well, I guess it is nighttime.' He grinned, and readied his fist, 'Normally I'd enter quietly, but I want to do things my style this time!' He lit his fist on fire, "Karyu no Tekken! Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" And blew the doors clean off their hinges.

He walked inside, and found a table in the back, yawning, 'Geez, I haven't slept in seven days… Yeah, it's all for world peace and all, but couldn't bringing peace be easier! It doesn't help I have a slave driver in my head…' And promptly fell asleep, dreaming of better times, unaware of the screams as a woman found Hyo's dead corpse floating in the canal.

* * *

The Next Day

Gray, Lucy, Happy, Erza, and Elfman were walking back into Magnolia, accompanied by Master Makarov. Erza was carrying Master Makarov due to the fact that he was still distraught over the destruction of the guild master hall at Fairy Tail's hands, which meant more paperwork for him!

"But Master! We still stopped Eisenwald!" Lucy interjected.

"Couldn't you have done it without destroying everything!" Makarov yelled back.

"Oy, it was a demon of Zeref we were talking about. You can't go fight one of those things without some destruction." Gray chimed in.

"Wagh!" Makarov yelled as Erza suddenly stopped and dropped him. " Erza, what was that for!"

Erza turned fiercely to Makarov, and bowed swiftly, "I apologize Master! It was my fault that we couldn't stop Eisenwald before they unleashed Lullaby. Had I been swifter, this could have been avoided! Please hit me!"

Makarov just waved his hands, somewhat concerned at how willing Erza was willing to be disciplined. Were it any other situation, he might he agree, but not like that! He grew a perverted grin at that thought, and started drooling slightly, until he shook his head to refocus. "Regardless of the destruction, you nevertheless stopped Eisenwald and saved countless lives, so consider it forgiven."

"Master is forgiving as always, because he's a MAN!" Elfman…

"Aye-san!" Guess who…

"Nevertheless, I'm glad to finally get back to my nice and tidy guild hall!"

One short walk later…

Makarov was staring wide-eyed at the guild hall door. "What is this!" The guild's wooden doors were completely smashed! They were not like that when he left! He saw Mira who was sweeping up the broken pieces, and immediately headed straight for her. "Mirajane!"

Mira looked up from her sweeping and recognized everyone. "Oh, welcome back master! Everyone!"

"Never mind that! What happened to my doors! Who's paying for them?!" Makarov nearly yelled at her.

"Oh, I'm not sure myself, but I think Natsu smashed them in. When I came to unlock the guild, I found the doors smashed in, and Natsu completely passed out asleep on one of the tables. I'm glad he's back again. I was worried he wouldn't return again after that mission with Gray and Lucy."Erza's eye twitched at the news Natsu was back, while Gray, and Lucy started sweating as they felt some magical pressure on them from her. "So, Natsu's back, huh? Thats a little fact that you seemed to forget to mention, you two…" She fixed a death glare on them.

Gray and Lucy bunched together, "We're sorry!"

Elfman just crossed his arms, "Hmph, that's because Erza's a man!" Erza punched him into the wall. Points for idiocy at least.

"Aye…" Happy interjected again.

Erza, still fuming, turned to Mira, now smiling somewhat terrifyingly. "Where is Natsu now?"

Mira pointed inside, "Oh, he's over there still passed out on the table. He must have been looking for Igneel pretty hard. That's why Lucy and Gray said he left."

Erza stomped inside, while everyone silently mourned the death of the Fire Dragon Slayer, 'May he rest in peace.' They all thought.

'Aye-san!' They all blinked. Did they just hear that in their heads! Everyone looked at Happy, who was just flying there eating a fish.

Happy looked up and asked, "What?"

"Natsu Dragneel!" Erza approached the table and grabbed the slayer by his neck, shaking him frantically.

"Wha-?" He stuttered, eyes semi-open.

Erza started shaking him violently as she began her rant, "Natsu! You leave for three years without telling anyone, and I come back to find out that not only were you back, but you left again for a week! This behavior is absolutely unacceptable! We are your family, and you can't just leave us behind!" Everyone began hiding in fear at the fearsome red aura Erza was starting to emit as her eyes glowed red.

"Erza…" Natsu spoke, his eyes shadowed, "Let go of me. Now."

Gray suddenly felt warm, Happy felt sad, Lucy felt like burning her book, Levy felt like dropping her book and going for a fitness program, Elfman felt like suddenly education was manly, Cana felt like going in for rehabilitation, Wakaba felt like giving up smoking, Vijeeter wanted to stop dancing, and Makarov felt like giving up his perverted ways. Did Natsu just stand up to Erza?!

"What did you say?" Erza questioned, her grip tightening.

"I am exhausted, and I just want to sleep. Let go of me now." Natsu ordered.

"You come back suddenly and think you can just order us around Natsu! Well," Erza's eyes widened as she felt a sudden impact in her stomach. "Ugh!" Natsu had just punched her in the stomach, HARD. She was there stuck in the air, as everyone in Fairy Tail looked like Hell had frozen over. Then Natsu flexed his arm, and Erza was sent cartwheeling back. That wasn't the thing that really had them jaw-dropped though. That was when Erza went "KYAAAA!" as she flew back out of the guild and into the Magnolia Cathedral.

Gray just stared, "Oy, did Erza just…"

Elfman added, "That wasn't very manly…"

Mirajane just laughed, "It was actually kind of cute."

"What kind of monsters are you people!" Lucy interjected. Why couldn't anyone here be normal!

Natsu just watched Erza tumbling off into the distance, took a big yawn, and promptly fell back asleep. Everyone just sweat-dropped at that. He just punched Erza, THE Erza a few kilometers away, and treats it like NOTHING? What the hell kind of training has he been doing!

After Erza came back...

Erza, now with a big bandage on her armor, had finally rejoined the group, her face threatening death and emasculation to anyone who dared bring up that event. Makarov, and everyone else were trying not to laugh, until Makarov cleared his throat. "So, Mirajane, did anything happen while we were away?" He regretted his words as soon as the dark look appeared on her eyes, and everyone else's as well.

"Oh, well, somebody was murdered."

"What!" Lucy put in, "Murdered!"

"Yeah, rumor has it that they found a body floating in the canal. Wakaba just went to go get a newspaper to find out what else they have on it."

"Um, excuse me." they turned to see a rather haggard older lady, who was using a walking stick to get by. She had fair-skin, long, greying silver hair. a face very covered in wrinkles that were currently visible with worry, and strange heterochromatic eyes. She looked very weary from travel, yet something obviously kept her going.

"Yes?" Mirajane walked up, using her comforting smile to try to soothe the ovsiously distressed woman.

"Is this Fairy Tail?"

"Yes it is."

"Oh thank kami! I have been stopping by all these guilds all over the place and-"

"What do you need that you have to go by so many guilds?"

"I need to file a job request!" The old lady seemed to grow more frantic, "I'm looking for my missing boy! He went out on a mission and I haven't seen him since! His name was Hyo Nii," Lucy and Gray's eyes widened at that, "and he said he would back from his mission soon, but its been seven days and I've heard nothing, not a peep from him! I'm worried something terrible has happened to him, and I don't know what I'd do!" She grabbed Mirajane, "Please! You're one of the strongest guilds there are! Can't you do something!"

The lady stopped when a hand grabbed her, and she looked down to see Master Makarov, who was smiling a very tender smile, "Ma'am, We'll do everything in our power to help you. I just need you to calm down. Now could you give me your name?"

The lady swallowed, seemingly calmed down a little. "My name is… is Angora Nii."

Makarov's smile seemed to get wider, "That's a beautiful name. Now, if you would come with me over to this table. Normally I'd take people up to my office, but in your condition, I don't think that's feasible. Now we just need a description and…" Makarov's voice faded away as he led Angora to the table.

Lucy just stared, but Mirajane smiled, "I know. We get so used to his usual antics that we can sometimes forget why he is the master. He's great at dealing with people in various states of emotion."

Gray looked down, "It's not just that… it's, well, we saw Hyo Nii, seven days ago, before he went missing."

Erza turned at that. "Where did you encounter him?"

Happy piped in, "We saw him at Shirotsume town! He tried to steal our book! And he tried to hug the life out of me!"

"He was a really cool person." Lucy said, "He could use blue fire, and he could use magic using weird hand gestures. We meant to ask him more about it, but he vanished before we could. We were going to go after him, but Natsu left to go look after Igneel, so we left."

Wakaba walked in, carrying a newspaper, "Oy! Here's the news article on the murder!" All of Fairy Tail scrambled to look, curious as to what was known behind one of the rarer crimes in Magnolia, at least until Lucy gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. Gray was staring wide-eyed as well, completely shaken.

"What's the matter Lucy?" Mirajane asked.

"Th-that!" Lucy pointed at the artist sketch of what they believed the murder victim looked like alive.

"Who? Do you recognize them?" Erza asked.

"Damn it!" Gray slammed his fist down, "That's Hyo! That's Angora's kid!"

Levy picked up the newspaper and began reading, "At approximately 1:30 am in the morning, a civilian who has chosen to remain anonymous found the unidentified victim's body floating in the Magnoliaa canal. Based on the temperature of the body and the lack of rigor mortis, officials have concluded that the victim had not been dead for long. Suicide has been ruled out based on the injuries on the body, the evidence of which indicates that the victim had been in some sort of scuffle. The cause of death has not yet been identified, but forensics has tied the victim to an unidentified explosion occurring seven days ago in the forests of Shirotsume Town. The nature of the incident is relatively unknown, but it has caused severe collateral damage."

Erza grabbed the table this time, "I was there! I was there just after the explosion had occured, but I found nothing! If only I had looked more for clues. I might have prevented this!"

Mirajane grabbed her shoulder, "Erza, you aren't at fault at all. There's no way even you could have predicted this."

"But still…"

"Oy, how are we gonna break this to her?" said Gray.

"I don't know." They didn't see Natsu stir, sighing and getting up.

Gray, Lucy, Erza, and Mira held their breath, not really sure about what to do, as Master Makarov led Angora back to the main group. "Alright, everyone. Angora has asked if we can help find her missing child. If you know anything, please speak up." They really wish he hadn't said that…

"Well…"

"Umm…"

"What is the matter?" Makarov asked.

"What is it?! Do you know something! Do you know where my baby is!"

"There isn't an easy way to break this out… but" Lucy tried to speak, but was interrupted by a strong voice.

"Hyo was found dead, murdered last night." Silence reigned throughout the guild hall, as everyone stared at the resident Dragon Slayer. His face remained absolutely emotionless.

Angora looked like she was about to shatter. Natsu walked up to her. "I'm sorry for your loss, but we all lose somebody." Mirajane and Elfman looked down at that point. "You'll see him again one day. I promise." Natsu turned to walk out, but he was stopped at the feeling of a sword held against his back.

"Natsu… How could you?!" Erza demanded.

"She was bound to find out eventually. It's better we tell her now, then having her find out from someone else." Mira and Elfman could feel his glare, even when he was facing away from them. Natsu might have forgiven them, but that doesn't mean scars don't remain. "Now I'm going home."

Erza looked ready to pursue him, but she was stopped by Gray, "Erza! You need to relax! We have bigger things we need to worry about!" Erza turned back just as Angora burst into tears.

"Hyo's dead? My baby's dead?"

Makarov tried to comfort her, but she was too far gone this time, "First his father left me, now you too Hyo? Both you and Matatabi? You promised you would be back! You promised me! But, you went out because we needed the money…" Angora gripped her walking stick so much it started to crack, as she started going into hysterics.

"Please Miss Angora, please try to calm yourself." Makarov tried to put in.

"It's all my fault! It's my fault Hyo's dead! He's all I have left, and he's gone!" Angora just trembled there, until she grabbed her chest in pain, and collapsed.

"Angora!" Lucy rushed to her.

"Jet! Run to Porlyusica, and grab her. NOW!" Makarov ordered. Jet took off in a flash using his speed magic, and ran faster than he ever has before to get Porlyusica. What humans are capable of when others are in danger is simply amazing.

He ran past Natsu, not even pausing to look, focusing intently on his mission. He never heard Natsu's unspoken thoughts. 'Don't worry Angora, you will see Hyo again. Tsuki no Me will succeed, and everything will be made right.'

Meanwhile, Makarov was trying everything, using what limited healing magic he knew to try to keep Angora stable. Lucy just stood absolutely horrified by this, while Gray just gripped his hands, absolutely powerless to do anything. Mirajane and Elfman just huddled together, the memories of Lisanna rushing back to them. Erza was barking out commands, "Droy, prepare the injury bay, now! Levy, get some towels and water for her! Gray, try to make sure she stays cool. Everyone move. NOW!" They didn't take time to complain.

Fairy Tail moved as one to try to save the life of this one woman, because they cared.

Jet arrived back at the guild hall as well, carrying a fuming Porlyusica. Jet immediately passed out as he arrived, but Porlyusica demanded, "Why am I here Makarov? I'm trying to work on my potions when this unconscious ruffian comes and drags me off!" She walks over to see the unconscious Angora.

Makarov turned to her, "This is Angora Nii. Now help her!"

Porlyusica immediately turned to medic mode. "Is the med bay set up?"

Erza responded, "Yes."

"Good. Now get her there now!" Porlyusica ordered. The Fairy Tail mages immediately complied, getting the frail Angora to the med bay. Once there, they set her down on one of the cots. Porlyusica stepped in and "GET OUT NOW!" kicked the Fairy Tail mages out. And she immediately went to work, trying to do what she could to save the poor woman.

After a stressful period of waiting, Porlyusica stepped out, tired and weary, as Fairy Tail crowded around her. A long period of silence followed, until Porlyusica spoke. "Angora Nii… has passed away."

The mages bowed their heads in sorrow. Makarov spoke, "I will ensure that her request around the various guilds is canceled, and I will make preparations for her funeral as well."

"I have never seen a human so physically devastated, Makarov. What happened?"

Makarov bowed his head, "Her son was murdered."

Porlyusica tch'd in disgust, and headed out, "I may be able to heal a broken body, Makarov, but I can't heal a broken heart."

On her way back, she couldn't help but be disgusted. "This is why I can't stand humans. Their petty disputes always bring nothing but sorrow and misery."

"Indeed."

Porlyusica turned, trying to find out who the source of the voice was. "Who said that! Who's there?!" She pulled a broom seemingly out of nowhere. "I'm armed and I know how to use this!"

"I'm certain you do. I can't tell how many Fairy Tail mages have faced the wrath of your broom." The source of the voice showed itself, being a black-haired man, wearing an orange spiral mask, wearing a black outfit with armor on the forearms.

"Who are you?" She demanded.

"Who I am is not of importance. I just came to deliver a message." 'Tobi' responded. He had chosen to leave his Akatsuki clock behind, in order to remain hidden a while longer. "The day peace comes will be soon. And soon there will be no more misery."

"Humans will never know peace. Not as long as they have freedom" Porlyusica bitterly said.

"That may be true." Porlyusica watched as the man began to disappear into a spiral vortex. "That is why I intend to take that freedom away." And he vanished, leaving Porlyusica with her troubled thoughts.

* * *

That night at the Fairy Tail guild, Angora was buried with full Fairy Tail honor, despite being away. After much pleading by Master Makarov, her son Hyo Nii was buried as well. It was a sorrowful night for Fairy Tail. A wonderful woman had died, and they could do nothing to stop it. They held a night of solemn drinking, as compared to their usual parties.

"Master." Makarov turned from his usual perch on the bar table to face Erza.

"What is it, my child?"

"Who is Matatabi?"

"What do you mean?" Makarov took another swig of his beer.

"Angora mentioned that she lost both Hyo and Matatabi, so where is she?"

"I don't know Erza, I honestly don't know.

* * *

The Next Day

The mood at Fairy Tail was sobering. Everyone was still depressed after Angora's death. From what they could tell of her, she was a sweet woman. There definitely was not enough of those people, so they were really sad. The mood reached some tension when Natsu walked in as well, and Erza went to confront him.

"Natsu!" Erza stomped over.

Natsu calmly responded. "What?"

"I… I… I…" Erza stammered out, "owe you an apology."

"Huh?!" Everyone yelled.

"You told Angora what we couldn't, and although she died, she might not have gotten better care anywhere else, and I overreacted. Please hit me." Erza bowed, while everyone sweat-dropped at her antics.

Natsu raised his hand, and stopped, "Erza. It's alright. I would have done the same in your position, but…" He grinned and light his fist on fire, "OKAY!" And he punched Erza's face into the floor, while everyone just gapes. Silence just reigned, as Erza lied there, her face embedded in the floor. Eventually she got up, and shrugged off the blow, and stared at Natsu intently, and laughed. Eventually Natsu started laughing, and then Gray, Lucy, Mira, Elfman, and everyone else.

Eventually Lucy shrugged it off, wiping the tears that formed on her eyes from the laughter. "I needed that. But still, that's impressive from Erza! That's what I'd expect from Fairy Tail's strongest mage!"

"Ha! Strongest mage! That's a load of bull if I ever heard one!" Lucy looked for the voice, until "Hey! Cheerleader! Up here!" She turned to see a blonde haired man with a lightning shaped scar on his face, with a purple shirt. and wearing a coat on his shoulders like a cape. "Erza might be strong, but she's not the strongest! I'm the strongest of Fairy Tail!"

"Who's that bastard?" Lucy whispered to Gray.

"That's Laxus, Master's grandson. He pretty much lets it go to his head." Gray answered.

"Hm?" Laxus paused, "Well, look who's here." He said, seeing Natsu. "I heard about what you did to Erza. Punching the Titania all the way to Kardia Cathedral was quite a feat. Who knows maybe one day you'll actually get on this second floor."

Lucy whispered to Gray again, "What's so special about the second floor?"

"That's only for S-class mages. It's where all the S-class missions are."

"Cool!"

"Anyway," Laxus carried on his tirade, "That probably won't happen any time soon! Not after a crybaby like you leaves after the de-" He paused at the feeling of cold steel against his neck. He turned back to see Natsu standing behind him, a murderous look in his eyes, carrying apparently a small knife. Natsu spoke.

"Never talk about that again." He leaned in closer, and whispered inaudible to everyone but Laxus, "Or I'll make sure you never speak again…"

Everyone was an awe. When had Natsu moved?! Levy commented, "He might even give you a run for speed Jet!

"Natsu!" Makarov ordered, "Although I understand your anger, step down! You are not an S-class mage yet!"

Natsu removed his knife from Laxus's neck, much to Makarov's relief, and jumped back down to the first floor.

Laxus gave him a death glare, "Fine! Say what you may! I am the strongest of Fairy Tail, and nothing will change that!"

Lucy's Apartment later that night

Lucy was sitting, writing at her desk to her mother. _Dear Mama, it was a pretty bad day yesterday. Do you remember the boy I told you about, the one that we met at Duke Everlue's mansion? I just found out he died today, and not only that, but he was murdered! What kind of person does that? Not only that, but his mother came in asking for him as well! Nobody could tell her, until Natsu flat-out tells her. I didn't know what to think of him after that, but he did say that everyone loses somebody, and it seems like he's lost someone important… The worst was after finding that out, it was too much for Angora, Hyo's mom, and she quickly passed away. I just wish we could have done more. Please, send her your prayers, Mama._

 _However, the next day, it seems like things have turned around. Natsu and Erza fixed things, mainly with Natsu face-planting Erza into the ground! We all had a pretty good laugh, and I think it helped! This guy, Laxus came by, and basically insulted everyone. He might be Master's grandson, but that doesn't mean we won't stand for it! At least Natsu put him in his place… Anyway, I love you. Love, Lucy._

She finished writing and turned around, and saw Gray, in his boxers behind her. "Kya!" Sh threw a book, specifically a dictionary for extra pain, at him. "What are you doing here! And put some clothes on!"

"Ugh... whoever said words don't break your bones is a terrible liar." Gray grabbed the large bump on his head in pain.

"Aye-san!" Happy said.

"What are you doing here too!" Lucy yelled.

"Gray asked me to give you this!" Happy held out a piece of paper which Lucy took, only to drop when she saw the red S stamped on it. "What?! This is an S-class mission! Why do you have this!"

"It's so we can get stronger." Gray said.

"Stronger?"

"Yeah. You saw how fast Natsu moved. I can only imagine how strong he is now, especially after that punch with Erza. I need to get stronger, and this is the best way to measure up! Will you join?"

"No way! I don't want to break any rules!"

"But look at how much money they're offering you could pay your rent for months!"

"Well…"

"And they're offering a gold Celestial Spirit Key as well!" Happy added.

"I'm in!"

* * *

The Next Day

Mirajane rushed down the guild steps to Master Makarov. He needed to know this immediately! "Master!"

"Hmm. What is it Mira?" Makarov asked.

"Someone's taken one of the S-class missions!"

"Oh, okay." Makarov took a swig of his ale before he realized the implication. "What?! Who took it!"

"I don't know!"

"Ho… Are you talking about the mission that a flying blue cat took." They both turned to face Laxus.

"Happy? Why would he do such a thing? Wait, where's Gray and Lucy?"

"You don't think… Do you think they took it?"

"I don't know. Which one was it?"

"The Galuna Island one!"

"The cursed island? Laxus, why did you not stop them!"

"Oh, how am I supposed to know it was Happy. Who knows, maybe if we're lucky, they won't make it anyway! Better to weed out the weaklings."

Mira gave him a demon glare. "Oh, I haven't seen that look in a while, She-Devil Mirajane."

Makarov sighed. "It doesn't matter. Erza!"

"Yes, master!"

"Go retrieve them! And take Natsu with you!"

"Hey, wait a minute! Natsu interjected.

"But he isn't S-class!" Erza added.

"And he also punched you halfway across Magnolia. Face it, we haven't seen what you're capable of since you got back Natsu, so this is our best test. Take it or leave it!"

"Fine…"

"Leave now!"

"Yes sir!" They both responded and left.

A short time later, Erza and Natsu were on a pirate ship that Erza had commandeered/stole/threatened to emasculate all the pirates for/borrowed, headed swiftly for Galuna Island. Erza walked over to Natsu, who she saw was disturbingly not sick.

"What happened to your motion sickness?"

"I trained to get rid of it. Plus it was getting pretty annoying. I couldn't blow stuff up whenever I wanted!"

Erza shook her head, "Honestly, three years, and you still can't stop destroying things." And she walked off.

Natsu stared off into the distance, 'You'd be surprised Erza…'

' _Indeed. Especially as an assassin, murderer, and schemer._ '

' _Oh. You've been awfully silent old man._ '

' _I saw no need to interfere._ ' Madara spoke

' _T_ _hat would have been useful when I was trying to get out of this! How am I supposed to look for the biju now!_ '

' _Sometimes it is better to follow the path of the river, rather than to push against it._ '

' _What the hell is that supposed to mean!_ '

Madara sighed, " _Opportunity knocks_.'

' _Oh, Why didn't you just say so_!'

Madara telepathically face palmed, ' _6 billion people in the world, and I get a pink-haired idiot… Normally I'd say Kami has a sense of humor, but I think he just wants to torture me for all the times I've cheated death._ '

Natsu just grinned, although Erza was wondering why his face seemed to just change emotions for no reason at all.

Back on Galuna Island, two figures were starting to move, as Gray, Lucy, and Happy started to uncover what exactly is happening on the island of Galuna: the plot of the Cold Emperor and the Demon Deliora. In the jungle, a rather reclusive person was becoming more active. He stepped out of his home, deep within his jungle.

"It seems that things are starting to move." He said to no one in particular. He was thoroughly covered though. He wore long dark brown pants, and a dark green long sleeve shirt. He wore a brown vest over that with random pockets here and there on it. Over that he wore a trench coat with a hood that covered his head, while his face was covered by a mask, and his eyes covered by shaded goggles. The most noticeable thing was the symbol on the back of his coat, a stylized leaf.

' _ **It seems that way,** '_ a voice replied to him from within, ' _ **Now that I can no longer sense my sister Matatabi, it seems someone has discovered us again.** '_

"Then I will have to make sure that they undiscover you." The man held out his hand, as bugs began to gather throughout the jungle.

' **Just be careful, my little larva**.'

"I will do my best, Chomei." The man responded monotonically.

On another side of the island, a giant behemoth was moving under the water towards Galuna Island, moving quickly for its sheer size. It quickly burst from the water in a giant explosion of water, only to reveal a single man, landing gracefully. He wore a blue trench coat, tightly buttoned, with a fur shawl on top. He also wore dark blue pants, and a blue cossack hat. He had light blue shaggy hair which he was covering his right eye. On the back on his coat was a four stylized curved lines, seemingly resembling mist.

"I don't know why he sent me here, but I intend to find out why he's sent me here. I don't like being apart from my sister for long…"

He looked to Galuna Island, and the purple beam descending upon its temple. "Now, Galuna Island, what are you hiding…"

* * *

 **The plot thickens! But, I gave some more backstory on Hyo. I actually got some serious feels writing this chapter. Hyo, you will be missed. Anyway, it looks like we have two new players now. I wonder who they'll be. Well, I guess I know. You'll just have to find out! Oh, and credit goes to Ryujomaru15 for the OC. This chapter was dedicated to you for the awesome help you've given me!**

 **Also, Natsu was just wearing Tobi's outfit before he joined the Akatsuki if that wasn't clear.**

 **Current Status of Tsuki no Me:**

 **Shukaku: Unknown**

 **Matatabi: Sealed; Host Hyo Nii. Status: Dead**

 **Isobu: Unknown**

 **Son Goku: Unknown**

 **Kokuo: Unknown**

 **Saiken: Unknown**

 **Chomei: Free; Host unknown**

 **Gyuki: Unknown**

 **Kurama: Unknown**

 **Please do report any typos to me, and I will promptly fix them!**

 **Also, please review, or I'll send Orochimaru after you! Ku ku ku ku... Cheers!**

 **Shinigami**


	4. Chapter 4

**Whew! Has it honestly been that long since I updated this thing? Man, I guess I've been busier than I thought! ... Who am I kidding. I just got lazy... Regardless, it was fun to finally get back to this old clunker!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Fairy Tail. They are the intellectual property of Kishimoto-dono and Mashima-dono.**

 **Thanks to Ryujomaru15, Yuri-the-king-of-dragons (x3), Sithlord king, TheKindredzzz122, Akiyama7Koharu, and Silent Songbird (x3)! Everyone else gets to have a personal visit by Orochimaru! Have fun, and try not to die. I have to clean up his messes!**

 **Thanks as well to all who followed and favorited, now on with the show!**

* * *

 _"Seek freedom and become captive of your desires. Seek discipline, and find your liberty."_

 _Frank Herbert_

* * *

The pirate ship landed on the cursed island of Galuna, and Natsu and Erza disembarked. Erza barked commands at the pirates not to leave no matter what. The things she threatened to do otherwise had Natsu blanching and Madara impressed.

 _'I must admit, that woman is something else. She might even break Morino Ibiki… I didn't even consider it was possible to do that with rubber ducky and peanut butter…'_

 _'I… really don't even want to try thinking about that… I get motion sick just thinking about that!'_

"Now!" Erza commanded, breaking them both out of their secret mental conversation. "We must find Lucy and Gray. They must be punished for betraying the master!"

Natsu face-palmed. This woman really could take things too far… She'd challenge God if she felt he was breaking one of Fairy Tail's rules. Or he took her strawberry cake. Whichever one comes first…

He suddenly perked up when he heard a loud crashing sound come from the coast. "Oy! Erza! There's something going on over there!"

"Are you certain, Natsu? I don't see anything." Erza asked.

"Yes I'm certain! My magic enhances my senses. It's one of the perks of being a dragon slayer!"

"Very well. Lead the way."

Natsu leapt down and began running to the area, with Erza swiftly taking off behind him. As she followed, she couldn't help but wonder, 'He's gotten much faster than before… I'm actually having to exert myself a little to keep up.' She rubbed her cheek as well, where Natsu had punched her all the way to Kardia Cathedral.

"Natsu, just what kind of training did you do over those three years?" She asked.

Natsu sighed, remaining silent for a little bit, before he answered, "The hard kind. I worked myself to the bone every day, even when it seemed like my bones would turn to dust. No matter what, I trained to be stronger than the day before. I trained, even when it seemed like death would be a better alternative…"

Erza's eyes widened, "How could you be so reckless?! What if you did die! Then what?!"

Natsu paused for a moment, catching Erza off guard, "If I felt like I wanted to die, I just remembered her, and I kept going."

Erza looked down, ashamed. Although she and Lisanna were never close, not like Natsu and her were, Mira was never the same afterwards. 'I see. While Mira chose to shut off the pain, Natsu used it to strengthen himself…'

"Besides, I had a nice teacher over those three years. He taught me more than I ever would have learned by myself."

That caught Erza's attention. "A teacher? Who?"

"Uh, he wasn't anybody you'd know, but he was a really good teacher, but he really put me through hell. You could almost say he's always with me in a sense."

*CRASH!* "KYAAAAA!"

Erza rapidly reacted, "That sounded like Lucy! Let's go!" Suddenly taking off in front of Natsu.

"Oy! Erza! Wait up!" Natsu yelled, increasing his speed as well, rushing through the forest, only to see Lucy, kneeling on the ground… as a giant rat went to belly-flop her!

"What the hell is that thing?!" Natsu yelled.

 _'Perhaps it's a summon? Those things tend to get pretty big…'_ Madara answered.

 _'Oh, you're still here?'_

 _'Of course I'm still here! I'm you, you idiot!'_

 _'Oh, right. Wait, aren't I forgetting something?'_

 _'Yes, that one cheerleader was about to get pancaked.'_

"Oh yeah! Lucy!" Natsu yelled, only to watch as Erza reequipped a sword, slashing the rat, who was apparently dressed as a maid, and sending it flying right next to another pink-haired woman… "Heh… Erza's as strong as ever!"

Erza looked to Lucy as she responded. "Erza!" only for Erza's look to turn deadly, "Ma'am…" Lucy started shaking in fear. 'That's right…We're here 'cause we broke the guild rules and took an S-class quest.'

Erza just seemed to get darker, "Lucy, I take it you know why I'm here."

Lucy just tried to act innocent, "To take us back, right?" Only for it to echo into silence.

'Wha-?! She sure changed personalities rather quickly!' Natsu sweat dropped, as he watched the whole scene go on.

"Yo! Luigi! How ya doing?" Natsu yelled, trying to break the ice.

"What? Um… Natsu, right?" Lucy asked.

"You betcha!" Natsu answered, giving his trademark grin.

"And it's Lucy! Not Luigi!"

"Lucy-san!" All of them turned to see Happy flying in. "What a relief! Are you all righ-." Happy stopped as soon as he saw Erza. Her back was completely turned to him, but he could tell she was looking right at him.

"WAH!" He yelled as he flew off at max speed into the distance.

-3 seconds later-

Happy was completely unconscious as Erza held the rebellious cat by his tail. Lucy shuddered as she could almost hear his tail popping. "Where's Gray?"

"Oy, Erza! Be careful with Happy! He's kind of fragile!" Natsu yelled.

"Wait, please hear me out! I'm sorry we broke the rules, but something bad is happening on this island! Some guys are trying to revive a frozen demon and the villagers are suffering because of their magic!" Lucy looked to the ground, "We want to save this island somehow…"

"Not interested." Erza bluntly spoke.

"Th-then at least let us finish the job! Agh-!" Lucy stuttered as Erza immediately held her sword out against Lucy's throat.

"You're mistaken Lucy. You betrayed our master. You will pay the price." Erza coldly uttered.

"Now, wait a minute Erza." Natsu interrupted, drawing Erza's icy gaze. "Maybe we should hear Lucy has to say."

"And why is that, Natsu?"

"Well, if what Lucy said is true, then they're going to unleash said demon, and if it gets unleashed, then who knows what damage it could cause?"

"Not interested. They must be punished."

'Argh! It's like trying to negotiate with a brick wall!' Natsu yelled in his mind. "Just imagine the damage it could cause if it should reach Magnolia. It could destroy Magnolia, or even your favorite cake shop!"

Erza's suddenly dropped Happy and took off. "First, we'll find Gray. Then we'll destroy this heinous monster for daring to destroy my cake!"

"OUFF!" Happy yelled as he hit the ground, head first.

Lucy just stared wondering what exactly happened. "Come on, Lucas! Don't want to get left behind now, do you?" Natsu yelled, as he started following.

"IT'S LUCY, YOU IDIOT!"

Unbeknownst to Lucy, Natsu was having a conversation in his head. _'Now why would you be interested in helping a bunch of peasants?'_ Madara asked, admittedly curious, given the lessons he pummeled into his pupil's head.

 _'Lucy mentioned it's some kind of demon, so maybe it's one of the biju we're looking for. If Fairy Tail could help weaken the biju for us, it'd make helping catch them much easier.'_

 _'Hm. I'll admit it's clever, for you.'_

 _"Hey! You're impressed and you know it!'_ Natsu yelled to his past life.

* * *

Gray stirred, looking around to get his bearings. 'Where am I?' He couldn't exactly remember how he got to this tent. He got up, albeit slowly, due to his bandaged wounds, and exited the tent, feeling the cool sea breeze on his face.

"Thank goodness! You're awake!" Gray turned to see one of the village girls.

"Where are we?" He asked.

"A storage area a short distance from the village. The village was destroyed last night, so we all took refuge here."

"The village was destroyed?" Gray asked, as he looked down trying to remember everything that happened until he remembered one key detail.

A man in armor, surrounded by three subordinates, giving a cold order, 'Go and eradicate the village!' His face notable without eyebrows, silver hair, and an icy gaze.

'Damn that Lyon. He actually went and did it?' Gray clenched his fist, as he looked at the villagers, trying to get everything in working order, until he felt a throbbing pain go through his wounds.

"It's a blessed relief no one was hurt though, thanks to Umi, and Lucy."

"I see… Where's Lucy and Happy? Are they here too? Where'd Umi go?!"

"Umi-san vanished as soon as the village was destroyed, but Lucy and Happy are in their tent. I was asked to tell you to head there as soon as you woke up. They're in that big tent over there." She pointed to one of the larger tents.

"Thanks." Gray bowed quickly in thanks, and headed to the tent, only to see… Lucy and Happy tied up, and… Erza?!

She simply stared at him with her patented Obey-or-I-will-send-you-to-hell-personally glare, "It's about time, Gray."

"Erza?!" Gray yelled, 'Crap! I didn't think she'd be here so quickly!'

"It took us a while to find this location. Lucy originally led us to the destroyed village, but we couldn't find anybody there."

"Aye! And I searched from the air, until I found the people gathering at this storage area!" Happy said.

"I was just waiting for you so Lucy could fill us in on everything." Erza continued.

Gray couldn't take it anymore. "Look Erza, I know you're mad about us breaking the guild rules, and you're here to take us back and punish us, but we can't leave now! You don't know what's happening on this island! I don't care if you have to kill me, but I-"

"Indeed. That's why I'm here to help." She said.

Gray's mouth nearly dropped to the floor. "Who- Wha- How- Whe-" Erza wasn't going to kill him? And she was helping?! What the hell is going on?!

"You can thank me for that!" Gray turned around to see Natsu behind him?! When the hell did he get there?

Gray just turned to look at Lucy and Happy for confirmation, but they just shrugged.

"Wait, if you're here to help… WHY ARE WE TIED UP?!" Lucy yelled.

"Oh, I forgot." Everyone just sweat dropped at Erza. "Please hit me!" She yelled as she bowed down suddenly.

'That's definitely Erza for you…' Everyone thought at the same time.

*SLAM!*

"EHHHHHH!" Gray, Lucy, and Happy yelled as Natsu suddenly slammed Erza into the ground, grinning as usual.

"Ask and ye shall receive!" He answered, as she got up and dusted herself off.

"Thank you. Now…" Erza equipped a sword and rushed towards Lucy and Happy.

"KYAAAA!" They both screamed as she swung her deadly blade towards them… and sliced the ropes off.

"Thanks for getting the ropes off, but did you have to nearly kill us at the same time?!" Lucy yelled.

"Yes, yes, she did." Natsu deadpanned, "It wouldn't be Erza if anything she did didn't nearly kill you in some way, shape, or form…"

"Ahem." Erza cleared her throat, getting everyone's attention, while Gray just sweat dropped at everything.

'Maybe I hit my head harder than I thought…' He idly wondered.

"Now, Lucy, Gray, if you could fill Natsu and I in on everything that happened before we arrived here."

Gray started, "I'll fill 'em in on what happened at the temple. Lucy, you explain what happened at the village, since I was unconscious."

Lucy nodded, "Sure."

* * *

24 Hours Previously; Hargeon Port

"Wow! This brings back memories!" Lucy yelled, taking in the sun and the breeze. "This is the town where I met you guys!" She said, turning back to Gray and Happy.

"Brings back memories?" Gray asked, "Wasn't that just a couple weeks ago?"

"Lucy sounds like an old lady!" Happy said, chuckling until Lucy glared at him.

"Okay! Let's find a boat that'll take us to Galuna Island!" Lucy said, marching off, leaving Gray and Happy to sweat drop at her rabid mood change.

Twenty-some rejections later…

"Don't know what your story is, but you won't find any sailors who'll go there. Hell, not even pirates go near that place." answered an epically-mustached sailor.

"You can't be serious!" Lucy yelled.

"Maybe I could ice our way to the island?" Gray said, forming a mini-bridge in his hands with his ice magic.

"Aye!" Happy said.

"That's even more ridiculous than trying to get a ride there!" Lucy answered, a tic mark on her head.

"Gray! What if Erza finds out though! We could kicked out!" Happy said.

"Kicked out!"

Gray, Happy, and Lucy all shuddered at the thought of angering the scarlet-haired witch- er, swordsman. "Wah! Why did you drag me on this quest, Gray! Now Erza's gonna kill me! Save me Natsu!" Happy yelled.

Gray just grabbed the rebellious cat, "Heh, we just finish this quest before Erza finds out! That way we can't get in trouble!"

Lucy sighed, "I don't think it works that way, Gray…"

Gray just slammed his fists together, ice magic flaring, "We'll show both Erza and Flame-brain we're just as capable as they are! That way they can't punish us!"

The sailor gasped as he saw Gray's magic, "Wait, magic? You guys are wizards? Are you here to break the island's curse?"

"Huh?" They all turned to him.

"Aye!" Guess who…

"Get in!" He gestured to his boat.

"Alright, we'll get in this boat!" Gray said, slamming his fists together.

"Gray…" Lucy began.

"What?"

"Your clothes…" Happy finished.

"Waugh!" Gray yelled, as soon as he found he was in his boxers. "Why does this always happen!"

'Pervert.' They all thought, as Gray scrambled to get his clothes gathered, then they all took off.

Some time later…

Lucy shivered as the air had now turned cold, as the sun had set, "I hate to say it, but I'm kind of scared now…"

Gray, once again without his shirt, shrugged, then turned to their pilot who was operating the boat, "Ne, old man, why are you helping us?"

The sailor turned back from the magic engine, all while still clad in his cloak, "My name is Bobo, and I'm a resident of Galuna Island." Everyone turned in shock to him. "I fled from that cursed island… Disaster will befall you all too… Such is the fate of those who visit the island…"

The sea started to get a little rough, while Bobo continued, "Can you really lift this curse?" He asked, flinging back his cloak, revealing a purple, demonic looking arm, "This demon's curse?!"

Everyone's eyes were wide, "Old man, you're arm?!" Gray asked.

"That's impossible!" Lucy shouted, "Curse? You don't mean…"

Bobo looked off into the distance, "There it is, the cursed island, Galuna…"

Happy, Gray and Lucy all stared, until she noticed something particular, "What is that? The mountain's glowing!" She turned back to ask, until "Ara?! He's gone!" She yelled.

Gray turned, "What?! Where'd he go?!"

"I don't know! He just vanished!" Happy said.

"Huh? What's that sound?" Lucy asked, as she picked up a low-rumbling sound.

Gray turned around, "Oy!"

Lucy turned around too, to see the largest wave she's ever seen! "KYA! A GIANT WAVE!"

"It's going to engulf us! Hang on!"

"Happy! Lift the boat into the air!"

"I can't do that Lucy! You're too heavy!"

*THWACK!* "BAKA NEKO!"

The wave came crashing down as they were all swept into the cold ocean, each of them gasping for air…

* * *

6 hours later…

Lucy stirred, feeling the rays of the sun on her eyes, and she slowly got up, trying to get her bearings. "Where are we?" She looked around, seeing Gray also getting up, while Happy's tail just wagged, since his head was currently embedded in the beach. "I guess the wave washed us up onto the island…"

"Looks like we lucked out… muttered Gray, as he blanched from the near-death experience.

Lucy scrunched her eyes, "What was with that man though? He said something about a demon's curse…"

"Let's go exploring! Uppa!" Happy yelled, having dug himself out, bouncing with joy.

Lucy shook her head, pulling out the job flyer, "It's easy to forget he's a kid sometimes… Anyway, according the job flier, there's a village on the island, and the chief posted the job. Let's head there."

Gray got up, "Let's go there! That way the Flame-brain has to be impressed!"

Some time later…

The trio came to a large wooden gate, marked with a usual 'Keep Out…' sign.

Gray just stared in amazement, "It's nice that we made it here, but what is this? Why bother with the keep out?"

"Excuse me! Can you please open up!" Lucy yelled at the top of her lungs, while Gray and Happy plugged their ears.

"Who's there?!" Came a voice from above.

Lucy smiled, "We're wizards from the guild Fairy Tail!"

"Nobody notified us about the job acceptance!" Was the staunch reply.

"Um…" Lucy stuttered.

"There must have been a mix-up with the paperwork!" Gray yelled.

"Show us your emblems!" They yelled, and watched as Happy showed his green mark on his back, Gray lifted up his shirt to show his blue mark on his chest, and Lucy lifted up her hand to show her pink mark.

"Oh! They're real! Wait just a moment! We'll open up the gate swiftly!" They yelled as they headed down.

Lucy leapt in joy, "Yes! Finally things are going our way!" Gray and Happy started laughing at her eagerness.

"Aye! Ha ha ha ha!" Their laughter echoed into the air, until a voice came out of nowhere.

"You shouldn't have come here."

"Ara? Who said that?" Lucy asked, turning around, trying to find the source of the sound.

"Lucy! Over there!" Happy shouted, pointing towards a section of the forest.

Lucy looked in, trying to find the source of the voice, until she found a man in the foliage, camouflaged by his clothes. What she could tell was that he was hooded, wore a mask to hide the lower half of his face, with regular pants and shirt. "Who're you?" She yelled.

"Leave now, before I'm forced to take action." He warned as he turned around, and headed into the forest.

"Oy! What do you mean? Stop now!" Gray yelled as he rushed forward, only to find the strange man had left.

"Did you see where he went?" Lucy asked.

"No… all I saw was that he had some kind of stylized leaf on the back of his jacket… It kind of reminded me of Kyo's little cloud emblem."

Lucy looked down as she remembered the poor fellow, until "Alright! Stand back! We're opening the gate now!" They all turned as the gate lifted up to allow them into the villlage.

"It's like we're entering into a giant monster's mouth!" Shouted Happy.

"Don't say that!" Lucy yelled as they walked in. They saw all the villager's were wearing hoods and cloaks that hid their faces and bodies, as the chief began to speak.

"I am Moka, the chief of this island village. Let's get right down to business, shall we? Everyone!" Moka turned to his villagers, as everyone took off their cloaks, showing off their hideous mutations.

"Just like the man on the boat…" said Gray.

"Ah…" Lucy added.

"Everything on this island is affected by this curse, even dogs and birds…"

"I don't mean to question you, but what makes you believe it's a curse?" asked Gray. "Could it be a disease?"

"We've consulted hundreds of doctors who say they've never heard of such a disease. Plus, the moon's magic has something to do with us taking these forms…"

"The moon's magic?" Lucy said.

"This island has absorbed moonlight since ancient times… It made the entire island shine like the moon. However, some years ago, the moon's light turned purple."

"A purple moon?" Gray began.

"Aye! The moon's coming out!" Happy exclaimed. They all looked up as the wind moved the clouds out the way, revealing the moon was indeed purple.

"It's true! The moon's purple!"

"Now this is creepy…" Gray noted.

"It's a curse. This is the moon's power." Moka said, as all the villagers began twisting and writhing in pain, as they took more demonic forms. "I apologize for the shock."

"What in the world is this?"

"You poor people…"

"Anyway, as you can see, we take on these forms whenever the purple moon shines. If this isn't a curse, then what is?! Come morning, we'll all be back to normal. However, there are some who lose their minds and never change back…"

"Oh no…" Lucy said, fully expecting what came next.

"We've since made it a rule… to kill those who transform into mindless monsters… We have no choice, as they always break free… As a result, I had to kill my own son…" a tear rolled down Moka's face as he looked at a picture of his son's face. A VERY familiar face.

"Th-that man!" Lucy gasped. "But, yesterday we-

"Shh!" Gray shushed Lucy. "I figured out why that man disappeared… It's because he can't rest in peace…

Lucy's eyes went wide in shock, 'A ghost?!'

Moka bowed, "Please, save this island! It's only a matter of time before we all lose our minds!"

Gray spoke up, "We won't let it come to that! We'll find a way!"

"There's only one way to lift our curse… Please destroy the moon…"

* * *

In our groups hut…

"You know, when you look at the moon, the creepier it gets…" Happy said, as he looked at the moon.

"Happy! Shut the window! You heard the village chief! We'll wind up demons if we're exposed to the moonlight!

"Although that is troublesome… Asking us to destroy the moon is a bit much… even for Fairy Tail."

"Yeah. I don't think there's any wizard who could do it…" Lucy added. "He wants us to destroy the moon, but I bet we can do something to break the curse if we do some investigating.

"Although I'm beat for now, ya know, shipwreck and all." Gray said, finishing stripping off his clothes except for his boxers.

"You're right. I'm kind of sleepy too." Lucy said.

The next morning…

"It's too early for this shit…" Gray said.

"Who are you blaming for not being able to sleep! Okay! Let's put our energy into this and get going!" Lucy energetically yelled, while Happy and the others looked like the walking dead.

"Open, Gate of the Clock, Horologium!" Lucy invoked, as her familiar clock summon appeared.

"The time is 7:48." He said.

"Are we really gonna find another way besides destroying the moon?" Happy asked.

"Are you really serious? We can't destroy the moon. That's too much, even for Fairy Tail!" Gray said. "We couldn't go moon-viewing anymore!"

"Aye! I can't live without that moon-viewing salted fish!"

"'Stop that, you guys, we don't know what's out there!' She says." Horologium said.

"Uhh, are you sure you're using your celestial spirits properly?" Gray said, as he observed Lucy, while Happy walked next to Horologium.

"'We're dealing with a curse here. intangible stuff is scary!' She say."

*thud thud Thud Thud THUD THUD THUD!*

"Hm, what's that?" Gray said as he turned around, to see… a giant RAT?! "It's huge!"

"'Beat it up, Gray!' She says."

Gray put his hands together, as he prepared his magic, "Ice Make: Shield!" Gray reacted quickly, just as the giant rat breathed some kind of noxious fumes. "Kuso! It stinks!"

"'Oy, what's going on, and when did you get in here?!' She said." As Lucy glared at Happy, who had somehow gotten inside Horologium.

"'Aye!' he said." Horologium suddenly grabbed his nose-clock-face? as he suddenly dispersed, leaving Happy and Lucy to deal with the smell. "It stinks!" They said, as they grabbed their noses.

The giant rat laughed, as it eyed its prey. "Uh oh, this looks bad…" Lucy said, as the rat took off after them!

"Run!" Happy yelled, as the rat continuously bombarded them with stink breath, until Gray had had enough, turning around rapidly.

"Ice Make: Floor!" He yelled, forming a icy floor that the unfortunate rat slipped on.

"Why didn't you do that first!" Happy yelled.

"Quit complaining! You didn't even do anything!"

Lucy turned and noticed something in the distance. "Look! There's some sort of building there!" She yelled, pointing at a very elaborate temple, with the crescent moon them plastered all over it. "Let's get inside while we still can!"

Lucy took off, with Gray and Happy following closely behind, until a swarm of insects suddenly overtook them! "Kya! Where did all of these bugs come from!" Lucy yelled, as she grabbed her whip, and started lashing everywhere, unfortunately clipping Gray more than a few times.

"Hey, Lucy! Watch where you fling that thing! It hurts!"

"Don't you think we have more important things to worry about!"

"I warned you to leave, and you didn't listen."

Lucy's eyes widened, 'That voice! It's the same one from yesterday!' She lashed her whip a few times, as the insect cloud began to clear up. "Who are you? What do you want with us?!" She yelled, as they all eventually caught sight of the strange man from yesterday, arm lifted towards them.

"O! Who the hell are you?! Why did you attack us!" Gray yelled.

"Hm… So they don't know who I am… I guess you'll be safe a while longer at least… However, I still can't let them live…" The man muttered to himself.

"Why can't you let us live! We're just trying to help this island!" Lucy asked.

The man's arm faltered slightly before it lifted up again. "I'm sorry, but I've been trying to stay hidden for far too long. It was enough that I had to deal with those other people, but now, you made far too many intruders."

"Wait! What other people? The villagers?!" Gray yelled.

"Aye!"

"Shut up, Happy!"

"Aye…"

"Can we at least have your name?" Asked Lucy.

"Very well then, it's only fitting you know the name of your killer. My name is Aburame Shinnen, and you're intruding on my haven, like the others."

"This is the second time you've mentioned these 'others.' Who are they?!" Gray demanded.

"They only frequent this temple, so I was willing to let it slide, although shortly after they arrived, the moon turned purple… You on the other hand, kept wandering about, and making a general ruckus." Shinnen brought his hands together, and began making hand signs. "We've talked long enough. It's time to accept your fate!" He yelled as insects began swarming from out of his coat.

"Wait, are those coming out of his clothes? That's disgusting!" Lucy yelled.

"I don't think now is a good time to dwell on that Lucy!" Gray yelled as he place his hands togther.

The insects around Shinnen began to buzz furiously as he spoke. "Hijutsu: Mushidama! Hidden Jutsu: Insect Sphere!" And the rapidly rushed towards the trio.

"Ice Make: Arrow!" Gray yelled, forming a bow, and launching ice arrow after ice arrow. They impacted, and exploded, taking out a considerable number of the insects.

Shinnen's eyes widened, as he began breathing heavily, "Fu, Shino, Subarashi, Tsuchiko, everyone… I spent years raising them, and you killed them!"

Gray raised his hands in a placating manner, "Oy oy oy.. Killed might be a bit of an overstatement… They were just bugs…"

The insects suddenly pulled back to Shinnen, as a red aura started to cover him, "Just bugs? JUST BUGS?! How about I crush you like the bugs you are!" He yelled, as a golden power began to cover his hands.

"I think you made him angry, Gray!" Happy said.

"How was I supposed to know he loves bugs that much!" Gray yelled back.

"Aye-san!"

"Shut up Happy!"

The powder gathered on Shinnen's hands, as he announced his attack, "Ninpo: Rinpun! Ninja Art: Scale Powder!" As he launched an incredibly swift, razor sharp burst of powder.

'This is bad! I can't make a shield fast enough!' Gray braced his arms, as the attack rushed rapidly towards them.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu! Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" Another voice came out of nowhere, as a water dragon rushed past the trio and collided with the Scale Powder, causing a massive explosion, while Shinnen's eyes widened.

Lucy tried her best to keep her footing as the force of the explosion pushed her back. "Another one?!" She yelled.

"Don't worry! I'm on your side!" The voice yelled. She opened her eyes to see… a boy about the same age as Gray! He wore a blue coat, as well as a cossack-style hat. His blue hair was wild, kind of like Natsu's, although one spike covered his right eye. On his back was another stylized pattern, this one resembling mist.

"Nice ta meet 'cha!" He cheerfully shouted, "I'm Umi!" Gray, Happy, and Lucy all sweat-dropped at the eagerness the guy had in the middle of a battle.

"Now then…" Umi turned to face Shinnen. "Why would you just attack these guys out of the blue?"

Shinnen now seemed to have calmed down, as he placed his hands in his pockets, "You… that power… Only nine have an energy signature like that… You, Umi-san, which number are you?"

Umi just seemed to get serious, "I thought the big guy was telling me he sensed another one… I'm three. Now that I've told you, which one are you?"

Shinnen just seemed to smile, "I'm Seven."

Umi sighed, "Seven huh? That's pretty high up there… I don't suppose you'd just let them go, would you?"

"Unfortunately not. You should know that Two's presence vanished just recently. Someone might have started gathering them again, so I'm not going to take risks."

"Oy! What the hell are you two jabbering about!" Gray yelled.

"That's unfortunate…" Umi's eyes narrowed, "though you really call yourself a Shinobi if you can't mind your environment like that?"

Shinnen suddenly looked at his person to see several exploding tags by him! 'When did he get those there!' He thought, as they began smoking. 'Shit! This is gonna hurt!' he braced himself as they detonated, sending up a huge cloud of smoke.

"Now that'll keep him busy for a while, but…" Umi grabbed all three of them, hefting them up. "Time to run!" He yelled, as he dragged them all into the temple.

Umi then turned around, as he went through more hand signs. "Suiton: Suijinheki no Jutsu! Water Style: Water Wall Jutsu!" Then took a deep breath and blew an enormous stream of water from his mouth, which then rose up, blocking off the temple entrance.

Outside, the smoke cleared, as Shinnen was revealed, somewhat unscathed, surrounded by the golden powder like some kind of armor. He just looked at the temple entrance, which was blocked off by the water, and muttered, "Ouch."

On the inside, everyone was trying to catch their breath as Lucy looked to their newly acquainted friend, if they could call him that. "Ano… thanks, uh, Umi, right?" She addressed him.

He brushed a bit of dirt of his coat, as he popped a few cricks in his back, "No problem! I'm just glad I had been following you guys for a while!"

Lucy reacted to that, in the obvious manner, "Wait, you've been following us?!"

"Aye!"

"Shut up Happy!"

Umi just started sweating at that, "Er.. Um… I think that came out wrong…"

"Well then, what did you mean by that?" Gray said, starting to get into an attack position.

"Well, after I arrived on the island, I kind of got a little lost, so I wandered around until I came across you guys, but I remained hidden until I knew if you were friend or foe.. You guys seemed like good people, especially for wanting to help the poor villagers, but I couldn't find a good time to introduce myself…" Umi said, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"Hm…" Lucy, Gray, and Happy went as they all took ponderous positions, leaving Umi to sweat at what exactly they were thinking, till they all turned so rapidly to him he almost freaked out, "Okay! You're in!"

"Wait, what?" Um yelled, 'That was fast!' He thought.

"This is an S-class quest, so I guess the help wouldn't hurt…" Lucy said.

"Plus if that Shinnen guy shows up again," Gray said, looking at the water wall, "You seem to be the best equipped to fight him. You both don't seem to use regular magic, that's for certain!"

"Aye! It's just like what that Hyo guy who almost strangled me used!" Happy added.

Umi tensed up slightly at that. "Oh? And what did Hyo use?" He asked.

"Hyo Ni," Lucy said, "He used some kind of blue flames, although he used the same hand signs you guys did."

Umi's eye narrowed, 'Blue flames huh… I wonder if he was Matatabi's host…'

' _ **Most likely.**_ ' A voice unheard to the other three echoed in his head, _**'Considering Yugito Nii was Matatabi's host when Yagura was mine, I would imagine that Hyo Nii would probably be her host now, or at least… was her host.'**_

Umi's scenery suddenly shifted, as he temporarily withdrew into his mind, revealing the giant form of the Sanbi no Kyodaigame, the Three-Tailed Giant Turtle, Isobu! ' _Thanks old man!_ ' He said.

 _ **'Who are you calling old!**_ ' Isobu yelled back, before shutting his eye again in thought.

 _'So why exactly did you call me here again?_ ' Um asked. ' _To the island, that is?'_

 _ **'After I could no longer sense Matatabi's presence, I felt it was best for the jinchuriki to start gathering together. The first time, we were easily picked off by Madara because we were separated. Yagura probably had it the worst of any of them, since that Tobi had essentially enslaved the both of us with his wretched Sharingan.'**_ Isobu looked down, as he remembered his old host in sorrow.

 _'I see… Although it might be kind of hard to persuade him to join us… He seemed to like his privacy, and I don't think he'll take kindly to me nearly blowing him up…'_

 ** _'Regardless, you should still try… I have not felt any of my brethren that strongly in a long time… Even if it was Chomei, it was nice to get close…'_**

 _'Yeah…'_

' _ **Hm… I believe you should return to your plane, your new friends are starting to get nervous…'**_ Isobu said, as he lifted up his right hand.

' _Wait_!' Um yelled, waving his hands frantically, ' _What are you doing?!_ '

Isobu had what could amount to a grin, ' _ **Allow me to assist you back!**_ ' As he swung down.

Umi's eyes suddenly regained focus in the real world, as he got his bearings. "Stupid turtle…" He muttered.

"Thank goodness!" Lucy said beside him.

"Hm?" Umi turned to her. "What is it?"

"You suddenly zoned out, and we couldn't get a response. We were getting kind of worried." Gray said.

'Cripes! I forgot they were here!' Um thought, "Uh sorry… I have a bad habit of doing out sometimes…" He turned to look around, "Anyway, this place is definitely unique…"

Everyone started looking around, as they started seeing the layout of the temple, "Wow! This place is big!" Lucy yelled.

"It's all busted up though…" Gray added. "Just how old is this place?"

Umi looked to the wall, and pointed, "Huh? What are those?"

"They're moons… This place was originally called Island of the Moon…" Gray answered.

"A moon island, a moon curse, and moon emblems… There's something fishy about this ruins…"

Umi turned to look around more, "Man, this place is falling apart." He started tapping on the floor, "Is this floor even safe?"

Lucy noted what he was doing, "Oy! Stop that!" Although it was too late, as the floor gave out, sending them all flying down.

"Umi, you idiot!" Gray yelled as they all crashed down.

Gray, Lucy, and Happy all landed among the rubble, while Umi landed on his feet. He looked at Happy, "I thought cats were supposed to land on their feet?"

"Aye…"

Lucy and Gray looked up, "Happy, can you fly us up?" She asked.

"It's too high up!"

Umi looked around, "Where are we anyway?" He asked. 'I mean, I could definitely walk up the wall, but I don't think they're ready for that yet…'

"We're beneath the ruins somewhere… It's a secret cave!" Lucy yelled.

"Since we're here, let's go exploring!" Happy yelled, as he took off on his wings.

"Wait, since when can cats fly?!" Umi exclaimed.

"Happy! Wait up!" Lucy yelled.

"WAAAAH!" They all heard him suddenly yell.

"Happy!" They all rushed to see what distressed the young cat.

"Happy?" Lucy asked.

"What is it?" said Gray.

"What is this thing?" Happy said, as Gray and Lucy walked in, followed by Umi, as they saw what it was, something Gray never though he'd ever see again…

It was an enormous block of ice, but it was encasing something horrible, some monstrous demon, a great horned one.

Lucy, Umi, and Happy were all staring in shock, but they never expected what Gray said, "Deliora?! That can't be! What is Deliora doing here?! It's impossible! He can't be here!"

"Wait, uh, Gray? You know this thing?" Umi asked.

"It's… It's…" Gray stammered out.

"Gray, calm down! Just breathe!" Lucy urged. She recognized a panic attack when it was coming. "Now, what is this thing?"

"Deliora… The demon of destruction… He looks exactly the same as then… Just what is going on?!"

Umi turned as he heard steps coming, "Someone's coming! Guys, hide quickly!" He quietly warned them, as they hid behind an alcove to see… a dog-man, and a guy with epic eyebrows and blue hair.

"This is where the voices were coming from." Said eyebrows, while the dog-thing just growled in agreement. "Toby, have you been soaking in the Moon Drip again?"

"WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT! THESE ARE ONLY DECORATIONS!" The now named Toby yelled.

"I was just kidding." Said eyebrows.

"Moon Drip?" Said Lucy, "Is that the curse?"

She turned as another pinkish-haired girl appeared, "Yuka, Toby, I have bad news." She said.

"Sherry? What is it?" Said Yuka.

"Someone beat up Angelica." Sherry solemnly said.

"It's just a dumb rat! Don't give it a name!" Toby yelled.

"She is not a rat! Angelica is a hunter that reaches through the darkness. And… love!"

"Talk about a serious weirdo… Especially with that last thing…"

'Has that girl been tripping or something?' Thought Umi. "Although, they aren't from this island… They smell different." He said.

"You can tell?" Said Gray.

"I have enhanced senses, which tends to prove useful." Umi answered, 'Just one of the perks of being a Jinchuriki.' He added.

'Plus, you get to be with the wonderful Isobu-sama!' Came a voice in his head.

'Shut up Isobu.'

"Inturders, huh?" Yuka said.

"Just when the moon's light is nearly gathered too. How sad. Let us get rid of the intruders before the Cold Emperor hears of this." Sherry said, "Yes, before the moon shows itself." Yuka and Toby nodded in agreement. "Now that they've seen Deliora, we cannot let them live. We will give the intruders eternal sleep. In other words, love."

"You mean death." Said Yuka.

A rock crumbled in the distance, and they rushed off to investigate, heading out of the cave, as our group came out from behind the rocks.

"Good work." Said Lucy, as Happy returned from causing the noise.

"This sure got interesting quickly…" Umi said.

"I wonder who this Cold Emperor is…" Happy added.

"Why did they bring Deliora here?! How did they find where he was sealed, anyway?"

"Where he was sealed?"

"This thing was sealed in an iceberg in a northern continent. It's an immortal demon that ravaged the Isvan region ten years ago… Ur-Sensei, the one who taught me magic, risked her life to seal it away. I dunno what it has to do with the island, but it doesn't belong here! You'll have hell to pay if you tarnish Ur's name!" Gray yelled, as his magic began flaring.

Umi turned to face the giant demon, "So your master sealed this demon away? Wow, that's pretty impressive…"

'Although considering the level of the seal, I'm not certain she got away scot-free.' Isobu added.

"Ah, no question about it." answered Gray.

"You're saying this was brought from the northern continent?" Said Happy.

"Could this demon be the cause of this island's curse?" asked Lucy.

"It's definitely possible… This demon is still alive and all…" said Gray.

"I'm surprised given the environment, that the seal hasn't melted. Perhaps it's just me, but doesn't ice seem like it's only effective for sealing in a colder environment?" Umi put in.

"No, my master Ur cast a powerful Ice Magic spell called Iced Shell on this demon. It's an unmeltable ice. Not even the most powerful flame spells can reverse it…" Gray answered.

 _ **'I know a certain four-tailed monkey who'd bet his tails on it that's false…'**_ Isobu said mentally.

 _'Shut up Isobu.'_

"So why would they carry this off if they knew that?" Gray continued.

"Maybe they don't know. Maybe they're trying to melt it somehow." Lucy theorized.

"For what, though?!" Gray yelled.

"I-I don't know…" Lucy shrunk.

"This is all too much. Who would bring Deliora here, and why?" Gray asked.

"So perhaps we should go after the guys who just went off?" Umi proposed.

"No, we wait here." Gray adamantly answered. "For the moon."

"Even though it's the middle of the day?!" Happy asked.

"I get the strong feeling that the island's curse, Deliora, and the moon are all connected. They said something about the 'moonlight being fully gathered too.'"

"Ah, I'm kind of curious about that as well…"

* * *

Some time later…

"I know I agreed to wait, but this is so boring!" Lucy complained.

"Aye." Happy said, seemingly contemplating fish.

Umi just sat in the corner, meditating, while Lucy suddenly clapped her hands, as she drew one of her keys. "I know! Open! Gate of the Harp Constellation! Lyra!" As she summoned her spirit.

"Lucy! Long time no see! You ever hardly call me! I want to help lots more! You're such a meanie!"

"Meanie? I'm only allowed to call you like three days a month…"

"Huh? Really?!"

Happy just sweat dropped, "Another weirdo…" Lucy's spirits were cool and all, but they always ended up weird…

"So what should I sing for you today?" Lyra eagerly asked.

"Anything. I'll let you decide."

"I want a fish song!"

"Alright! I'll sing whatever! YAY!"

"Lyra's a really great singer." She explained to Happy.

"So is Mira! She even sings fish songs for me!" rebutted Happy.

Lyra's music fell sweetly over the area, as they all soaked in the music. Gray for his part, remembered when he made his first successful Ice Make: Wall, with his master. Such memories, from happy times long gone, were too much for him, and he slowly began bursting into tears, causing Lyra to stop.

"Gray?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah, what?" He strained out.

"Lyra is good at singing about what people are feeling, but…"

"You were crying." Happy bluntly stated.

"I was not!" Gray denied.

"Sing something happier, Lyra!" Lucy asked.

"Huh?! Why didn't you say so?" She exclaimed.

"Now that I think about it, be quiet! What if someone shows up!"

After some time, everyone fell asleep again, leaving Gray alone to ponder, until the ground started shaking again. "What's going on?!" They shouted, as everyone woke up.

A magic seal formed on the top of the cavern, as purple light started streaming down. "Purple light… Is it the moon?!" Gray analyzed.

"What is this?! What's going on?!" Happy shouted.

The light began illuminating the ice. "It's shining on Deliora! This isn't a coincidence!"

"Let's find the source of the light!" Gray ordered, as they all rushed off.

After travelling through several floors, they eventually came to the top, where they found some cultists gathered in a circle, chanting and summoning the moonlight in an elaborate ritual.

Umi spoke up, "These guys really are collecting the moonlight…"

' _ **It's a good thing Shukaku isn't here… Otherwise he'd be going bonkers due to the presence of the moon…'**_

 _'Shut up Isobu.'_

"They're shining it on Deliora… but what for?" Lucy said.

"It's Moon Drip, a Belianese spell." Lyra spoke out of nowhere.

"Eh?! You're still here?" Lucy asked.

"So that's what's going on. These guys are trying to use Moon Drip to revive that underground demon."

"That's impossible! Iced Shell is unmeltable!"

"Moon Drip can melt it. Focused moon energy can break any spell as a matter of fact."

"You can't be serious!" Happy exclaimed.

"They have no idea how horrific Deliora is!"

"I think the Moon Drip is the cause of the phenomenon the islanders believe is a curse. Concentrated moon energy can contaminate people's bodies as well. That's how powerful this magic is."

"Sh!" Lucy suddenly shushed. "Someone's here!" As a man with elaborate armor and a horned mask suddenly walked in, accompanied by the stranger's they met earlier.

"Damn. I'm sleepy because we woke up during the day…" grumbled Yuka, while Toby started sleepwalking. "We didn't even find the intruders!"

Toby suddenly woke up, screaming, "Were there even any?!"

"It's sad, Cold Emperor," lamented Sherry, "It appeared that there intruders during the day, but they got away. I am unfit to speak of love."

"Intruders…" muttered the Cold Empreor, while Gray suddenly gasped at the voice.

'That voice… that can't be!'

"He sure looks high and mighty, especially with that weird mask!" Lucy noted.

"Really? I think it's cool!" said Happy.

"It kind of seems impractical…" Umi muttered.

"Is Deliora's revival still incomplete?" The Cold Emperor asked.

"From the looks of it, he will be revived either tonight or tomorrow." Sherry answered.

"At long last. As for the intruders… I've come too far to be interfered with now."

"Yes. The only people on this island are in the village on the outskirts."

"Go eradicate the villagers." He ordered.

"Understood!" They responded.

"What!" Umi yelled.

"The villagers had nothing to do with this!" Lucy added.

"I'm not fond of blood… but… they've given me no choice."

Umi suddenly stood up, anger very evident in his face, his right eye shut. "How dare they… Involving innocents! They're some of the most despicably people I've ever met!"

He grabbed several kunai with exploding notes, and threw them in to the air, detonating them to get the attention of the group. "Oy! We're the intruders!"

"Tch! You couldn't wait a little bit longer!" Lucy yelled.

"What should I do? Sing?" Lyra asked,

"You should probably just go away…"

"Aww! You're no fun!" Lyra chuckled as she vanished.

They caught sight of some of the group's Fairy Tail emblems. "Oh! They're from Fairy Tail!" Sherry noticed.

"So the village sent a notice out to the guilds for help…" Yuka concluded.

"What are you doing? Go and eradicate the village!" The Cold Emperor ordered.

"Why?!" Lucy yelled.

"Those who stand in the way, and those who concocted said interference. They are all the enemy."

"You piece of shit!" Umi yelled as he rushed forward, only as Gray ran right in front of him!

"Stop your stupid ceremony or whatever this instant!" He yelled, as he summoned his magic, sending a great rush of ice towards them, and causing them to fall back.

The Cold Emperor responded as well, placing his palm on the ground, sending his own wall of ice, canceling each other out.

"He uses ice too?!" Yelled Happy. "Where's Natsu when you need him!"

"Uh… we kind of left him back home…" answered Lucy.

Gray got up, speaking, "Lyon!" Leaving everyone speechless. "Damn you… Do you even know what you're doing?!"

"Heh, it's been a while, Gray!" Lyon laughed.

"What is the meaning of this!"

"to think that you were one of the wizards the villagers called on… Did you come here knowingly… Or was it sheer coincidence! No… not that it makes any difference. You three, get going and take care on the village."

"Yes sir!" And his followers took off.

"Wait! Stop!" Umi yelled, as he went to follow.

"Umi! Don't move!" Gray warned, but he was too late as Lyon held out his hand, concentrating his magic, as he froze Umi's entire torso!

"Happy! Take Lucy out of here now!" Gray ordered.

"Aye!" Happy swiftly followed, as he took off, while Gray launched an ice geyser towards Lyon, who only formed a shield to repel it.

"Happy! You're just going to leave them?" Lucy asked.

"They're surrounded by a type of magic that chills empty space! Only Gray can handle that!" Happy answered. "We would've been encased in ice next!"

"But we can't just-"

"Who'll save the village if we all get beat!" Happy cried out, tears in his eyes.

Lucy gasped, "I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were fighting back the urge to help… I'm sure they'll both be fine!"

"Aye!" As they flew off to the village.

"So you created an opening for the girl and cat to escape… Although I'm impressed at the perception of the cat. No matter. I doubt those three can stop Sherry and the others." Lyon eyed both Gray and Umi, who was still encased in his ice sphere. "Regardless," He spoke, as he lifted up his hand, and snapped. "Explode."

"Umi!" Gray yelled, as he turned to help, just as the sphere detonated, wiping out Umi's entire torso! He rapidly turned back, wrath evident in his eyes. "Damn you Lyon!" He yelled, magic absolutely flaring.

Lyon just started laughing, until, "Now that wasn't very nice…" Both Lyon and Gray's eyes widened as they turned to face Umi, who was… still alive?!

"What?!" Lyon yelled.

Umi's head and hands just floated there, streams of water connecting everything, as water began coalescing back into his form. "So it's a fight you want?" Umi dangerously asked, as he began moving his hands together.

"Umi! Go help Lucy and Happy!" Gray ordered.

Umi's eyes just narrowed dangerously, "Do you really think I'm going to let my torso being obliterated just pass?!"

"This is my fight!" Gray shouted.

Umi paused, as he saw the look in Gray's eyes, and decided to comply, "Very well, but you better win!" He said, as he vanished in a puff of smoke.

"I see you're just as reckless as ever Gray!" Lyon spoke.

"could you quit acting like you're my superior, Lyon!" Gray shouted, as he took a step forward, "You're not Ur's student anymore!"

"Neither are you, Gray." Lyon answered, as he took off his helmet. "Because Ur is no longer of this world."

"She sacrificed her life to seal Deliora away! You're trying to destroy her legacy!"

"Don't delude yourself! You killed Ur! I'm amazed you had the nerve to live, Gray! I'll say it again, you killed Ur! It is presumptuous you to speak her name!" Lyon yelled, as he sent a mass of ice, knocking Gray back.

"Agh!" Gray yelled in pain, as he hit, and went through the brick wall.

"What's the matter? Feeling too guilty to fight back? In that case, please stay out of the way. I'm going to revive Deliora.

"I won't let you!" Gray yelled as he rushed forward.

* * *

Present Time

Gray took a deep breath, as he finished recalling his fight, and the epic beatdown Lyon handed to him.

"I see…" Erza spoke, as she finished analyzing the situation from what she's been told.

"That's why we can't leave! Otherwise, they're going to unleash Deliora really soon!" Lucy yelled.

"But I still don't have all of the story yet. Lucy, will you tell us your part? Although I am curious about who this Umi and Shinnen are, and whether they're friend or foe, as well as where they are."

"Umi vanished after the village was destroyed, but we haven't encountered that Shinnen guy after the temple. He's probably still on the island though…"

"We'll have to deal with him when the time comes. Until then, we'll deal with the more immediate threat. Now Lucy, will you tell us your part of the story?"

"Uh, I will, but where's Natsu?"

"What? He's right here-" Erza spoke as she turned to where Natsu was, only to see… he wasn't there! "What?! Where did he go?!"

"He left after Gray finished with the Deliora part…" Happy answered, still tied up.

Erza started getting surrounded by a fiery red aura, as her hair started floating. "And you didn't think to mention anything?!"

Poor Happy just started sweating, "Aye… Gray was in the middle of story time!"

Erza just lost it, "NATSU, WHEN I FIND YOU, I'M GONNA KILL YOU!"

* * *

Meanwhile, with Natsu

' _Why do I feel like Erza wants to kill me?'_ Natsu thought.

' _Probably because you left without announcing it.'_ Madara answered.

' _Ah_.'

 _'Anyway, where are you headed?'_

 _'Figured I'd check out this Deliora dude. Sounds interesting. Maybe he can give a good fight.'_

 _'Hmph. Too bad he's not the biju you thought he was. Frozen in the ice, he would have been an easy target.'_ Madara grumbled.

 _'Hey! Taking this mission turned out even better than I expected! We found not only one, but two jinchuriki!'_ Natsu countered.

 _'Yes, the Sanbi and the Nanami, both of which are both far more powerful than the Nibi. How do you plan to try to catch those, when the Nibi left you nearly for dead!'_

 _'Relax old man. That's why I'm headed to the temple!'_

 _'What do you mean?'_ Madara asked, somewhat confused by his pupil.

Natsu explained his plan to Madara, who could only grin evilly at his pupil's sinister plot. _'I see… If this works out, then capturing the biju would become even easier!'_

 _'It'll take some time, but if it does, those biju'll be easy pickings!'_

Following how Gray described the route, Natsu came to the Temple of the Moon, although he chuckled at the irony of the building. _'It all starts and ends with the moon.'_ He thought.

 _'For the sake of peace, it must.'_ Madara added.

Natsu stepped into the temple hall, where he saw the giant crater from Gray's story, where they had falled into the pit. ' _This must be where we head down._ ' He thought, as he circled the hold, until…

' _Natsu, watch out! The floor's still unstable!'_ Madara shouted, as the ground began to collapse even more!

"WHOA!" Natsu yelled, as he rapidly jumped back to avoid a rather ungraceful fall, although he didn't exactly crash into the wall gracefully… "Ouch…" Natsu grumbled, as he got up, trying to balance himself on the wall… Only for a section of the wall to push in, and a secret door to open, which Natsu once again, not so gracefully fell through. "I think Kami just hates me today…" Natsu whined, as he tried to get his bearings, looking around the dark corridors he apparently discovered.

 _"What is this place? Some kind of secret room?"_ Natsu asked, as he lit his hand on fire, revealing more dark corridors.

 _'Hm… Explore it for now, and see what you find.'_ Madara ordered.

 _'Yeah, yeah, whatever…'_ Natsu countered, as he began traveling through the long and twisting halls.

A few dead ends, and near loss of temper later, Natsu eventually came to a main hall, but it caught him by surprise. "What the hell is this?!" He yelled as he saw the contents of the room.

Laboratory equipment, test chambers, surgical tools, cabinets, journals, you name it. The hall was filled with them! "What the hell is all this doing in a temple!"

 _'Hm… I have a theory, but you'll have to look around. Try looking through the journals, and see if there's anything that'll tell us who owns the place.'_ Madara ordered.

Natsu went through the equipment, trying to scan through the old journals, and generally kicking up a crap load of dust, until he finally found a name in one of the journals. _'As I thought.'_ Madara began. ' _This lab was one of the old hideouts of the old Snake Sannin, Orochimaru!'_

 _'Orochimaru, he was one of the guys who fought you, right?'_

 _'Both skillful and powerful, indeed. His knowledge of jutsu proved to be one the major undoings of my plan so many years ago… I hope he died an excruciatingly painful death. It's a shame that it couldn't have been at my hand.'_

 _'What's it doing all the way out here though?'_

 _'He had many hideouts, some in locations so vague and obscure so as to never be found. Even now, there are probably still some hidden ones no one has discovered. However, he was a genius who enjoyed taking specimens, as well as perfecting jutsu. Try looking around to see if you can't find anything that would be useful.'_

 _'Sure, you're not the one getting allergies!'_

 _'Shut up and start looking.'_

Grumbling, Natsu started looking some more, and sneezing, and riffling through stuff, and sneezing, until he had had enough. ' _That's it! I've had it! I've been looking for a while now, and I haven't found anything!'_ In anger, he punched the wall, but…

*thud*

"What the-" Natsu yelled, as he started tapping the wall, noting the difference in sound between sections.

 _'It sounds like there's a hidden compartment in here!'_ Natsu noted, _'But why would you need a hidden area in a already secret lab?'_

 _'That would be for something he really didn't want people to know about. Try looking around, and finding a switch to open the-'_ Madara didn't get to finish his statement, as Natsu just dug his hands into the wall, and ripped it clean out. _'door…'_

 _'I've had enough of looking around. We do things my way now.'_ Natsu said.

 _'Brutish, but I suppose it works…'_ Madara grumbled.

Natsu looked into the compartment, as he analyzed the contents of the secret compartment. _'Let's see we've got an old map… Um… it has directions to…'_

 _'It looks like it details where some of his other bases are… Although it's too decrepit. There's only one still legible.'_

' _Hm… Looks like it'd be located where Oak Town is…_ ' Natsu noted, as he continued rifling through, this time grabbing some kind of sealed, metallic box. _'What the hell is this?'_ Natsu said, as he began trying to open the box, and after some time and frustration, with a hiss of cool, rushing air, it opened.

Wiping the cool cloud of air out of his face, Natsu looked in, seeing three containers of blood in them, cryogenically frozen, although he was unprepared for what Madara said, after he read the description of the contents.

 _'Is that what I think it is?! The names on those containers! Save those at once! Knowing that snake, considering what he would use them for… keep searching!'_

Natsu quickly read the names on them, _'But those guys have been long dead. I don't really understand why it's so useful to have their blood, but whatever you say…_ ' Natsu said, as he pulled out a scroll to seal the box in.

 _'Keep looking! See if you can find a scroll or something! If you can find it, then with those three, you won't have to worry about being overpowered anymore at all!'_

Natsu looked up, and saw a scroll stashed rather haphazardly in the storage area, which he very quickly grabbed, gingerly opening it, since it was old. It described some kind of jutsu formula, a very complicated one, and by the looks of it, very forbidden. _'Is this what you were thinking of?_ '

 _'Natsu, fate has decided to smile on us. Memorize that, and then destroy it. Tsuki no Me just became much easier.'_

 _'Okay… I don't really understand what's going on…'_

 _'Just read the scroll and you'll understand.'_

Natsu activated his sharingan, and quickly read through the scroll. His cluelessness very quickly turning to a sinister grin. _'I see now… That's why you were so excited! That's awesome!'_

 _'That jutsu is one of the most powerful you can learn. I know just what it's capable of. Now destroy it, so no one can use it against us!'_

 _'This Sharingan thingy sure is useful!'_

 _'It's not just a thingy, it's one of the most powerful ocular kekkai genkai in the world! It's not just something you can dismiss as trivial!'_

 _'Too many big words there old man!'_

' _Hmph. Don't you have other things to get to now!'_ Madara scolded.

 _'Yeah yeah, I know. World Peace, obliterate my enemies, the usual.'_ Natsu bantered back as he burned the old scroll, while requiping into his Tobi outfit. He retraced his steps back to the main hall, placing explosive notes along the walls on his way back. "No sense letting anyone else use this place! Although I do need to take care of my stuff before I set them off..."

Finally upon reaching the main hall, he leapt down into the pit, and landed into Deliora's cavern. Walking slowly into the cave, he caught sight of the demon, indeed frozen solid as Gray told him. Sharingan glaring behind his Akatsuki dress, he spoke, "It's time to get to work."

* * *

 **Dun dun dun! Just what exactly is Natsu up to? What did he discover in Orochimaru's old hideout? How will Umi and Shinnen change things up? Find out the rest in the next chapter!**

 **Hope y'all liked it! It was pretty interesting getting back into the swing of things! I was initially planning on doing the whole arc in one chapter, but it got too big, so I broke it up into parts... Probably will be finished in one or two chapters.**

 **Here's what the names of the new characters means: Umi: Sea; Shinnen: Faith, Belief; Deeply rooted conviction.**

 **Current Status of Tsuki no Me:**

 **Shukaku: Unknown**

 **Matatabi: Sealed; Host, Hyo Nii; Deceased.**

 **Isobu: Free; Host, Umi; Alive**

 **Son Goku: Unknown**

 **Kokuo: Unknown**

 **Saiken: Unknown**

 **Chomei: Free; Host, Shinnen Aburame; Alive**

 **Gyuki: Unknown**

 **Kurama: Unknown**

 **Here's the current review listing. Those in brackets will be updated soon!**

 **Paradise Acquired (ANE): 18!**

 **It ended with Blue Flames (FT/ANE): 1**

 **Angels, Gods, and Demons (KI/ANE): 2**

 **[The Demon King of Dragon Fire (FT/ANE): 8]**

 **The Dragon Fallen becomes the Serpent (N/FT): 4**

 **The Dragon's Eye (N/FT): 0**

 **The Angel's Fallen Light (KI): 1**

 **The Guardian Angel of Fairy Tail (FT): 6**

 **The Jealous Flame (FT/FMA): 3**

 **[This is War! (N/FT): 8]**

 **Shoutout time!**

 **Gears and Flames Memoriam, by ShadowDragon94:** Fairy Tail is getting on its feet again when Natsu brings in an injured girl who may know more about him than they realize. But what is Natsu hiding? And why? When the Grand Magic Games surface, trouble stirs and the once famous guild will be fighting tooth and nail for their right to be the best and survive. One question: what do this girl and Natsu have to do with it? (One of my all-time favorites!)

 **I see Fire in the Sky, by snakeboy33:** Natsu is present when Fairy Tail disbands, and overwhelmed with hurt, and anger, he runs into the mountains. There, his despair consumes him, and something happens. What happens the next year, is something nobody in the now gone guild, could have ever dreamed in their wildest nightmares. Dark (but maybe not evil) Natsu.

 **Master Dragneel, by digemsmack:** Certain things seemed to line up just right to make it so that Natsu wouldn't be able to go to the S-Class exams. It all started with an urgent quest asking for him and from there it went downwards, but Natsu being himself wouldn't let that stop him. Will he be able to keep Fairy Tail afloat, or will it all come crashing down around him? Disclaimer I do not own Fairy Tail.

 **Fullmetal Salamander v2, by SmallBasilisk28:** Driven by his grief after Lisanna's death Natsu searches through forbidden magic to try and bring her back, but he failed and now has to pay the price for his actions. He now searches the world for the fabled philosopher's stone to restore his arm and bring back the woman he loves. Pairing Natsu x Lisanna enjoy and leave plenty of reviews.

 **The Slayer, by Silent Songbird:** A Demon Older Than Time. A Black Mage. A Legendary Dragon. A God. What do all these have in common? Simple. They are the enemies of Natsu Dragneel. Being the reincarnation of a legendary blonde sage was one thing, but discovering that you're 400 years old? That's something else entirely. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend isn't supposed to be literal!" AU. Natsu-Centric.

 **Now, as always, please leave a review! It helps a lot with the writing process! Or else I'll have Guy and Lee show you the power of youth... Cheers!**

 **Shinigami**


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